ISBN 978–80–7671–068–9
THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
THE YURTA-STROYNO
ARCHAEOLOGICAL
PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace
The Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec in es i-
ga ed a Roman u al se lemen loca ed along he
middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e , in sou h-eas
-
e n Bulga ia (Roman p o ince o Th ace). The main
objec i es o he p ojec we e he de e mina ion
o he habi a ion dynamics o he se lemen , he
in es iga ion o i s a chi ec u al appea ance and
gene al unc ion, as well as i s possible ela ion o
he Roman mili a y camp in Kabyle.
This olume b ings oge he s udies on he se -
lemen ’s in es iga ion, including he exca a ion and
su ace su ey, as well as indi idual a icles dealing
wi h di e en aspec s o he se lemen exis ence
and ma e ial cul u e.
Pe a Tušlo á An assis an p o esso a he Ins i-
u e o Classical A chaeology a Cha les Uni e si y
in P ague. She has been wo king on di e en a chae-
ological p ojec s in he Balkan peninsula since 2008
including Bulga ia, No h Macedonia, and Romania.
He main in e es s lie in he Roman and La e An ique
Th ace, wi h special ocus on he po e y; as well as
in he echnology o po e y making and ce amic
pe og aphy.
Ba bo a Weisso á An assis an p o esso a he
Ins i u e o A chaeological S udies a he Ruh Uni-
e si y in Bochum, Ge many. She has been wo king
on exca a ions and su eys since 2006, aking pa
in p ojec s in Bulga ia, No h Macedonia, Tu key and
I aly. He main in e es s include digi al a chaeology
wi h a ocus on he applica ions o geog aphic in o -
ma ion sys ems (GIS), me hods o spa ial analyses
and quan i ica ions as well as designs o a chaeo-
logical su eys.
S e an Baka dzhie The di ec o o he Region-
al His o ical Museum in Yambol, and chie assis an
p o esso a he Uni e si y o Lib a y S udies and
In o ma ion Technologies in So ia. His main in e es
is he egional a chaeology o sou h -eas e n Bulga -
ia wi h aspecial ocus on he Roman o Middle Age
pe iods. He is adi ec o o long - e m a chaeological
exca a ions in Kabyle (Roman pe iod) and Voden
(Middle Ages).
ISBN 978–80–7671–068–9
THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
THE YURTA-STROYNO
ARCHAEOLOGICAL
PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace
The Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec in es i-
ga ed a Roman u al se lemen loca ed along he
middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e , in sou h-eas
-
e n Bulga ia (Roman p o ince o Th ace). The main
objec i es o he p ojec we e he de e mina ion
o he habi a ion dynamics o he se lemen , he
in es iga ion o i s a chi ec u al appea ance and
gene al unc ion, as well as i s possible ela ion o
he Roman mili a y camp in Kabyle.
This olume b ings oge he s udies on he se -
lemen ’s in es iga ion, including he exca a ion and
su ace su ey, as well as indi idual a icles dealing
wi h di e en aspec s o he se lemen exis ence
and ma e ial cul u e.
Pe a Tušlo á An assis an p o esso a he Ins i-
u e o Classical A chaeology a Cha les Uni e si y
in P ague. She has been wo king on di e en a chae-
ological p ojec s in he Balkan peninsula since 2008
including Bulga ia, No h Macedonia, and Romania.
He main in e es s lie in he Roman and La e An ique
Th ace, wi h special ocus on he po e y; as well as
in he echnology o po e y making and ce amic
pe og aphy.
Ba bo a Weisso á An assis an p o esso a he
Ins i u e o A chaeological S udies a he Ruh Uni-
e si y in Bochum, Ge many. She has been wo king
on exca a ions and su eys since 2006, aking pa
in p ojec s in Bulga ia, No h Macedonia, Tu key and
I aly. He main in e es s include digi al a chaeology
wi h a ocus on he applica ions o geog aphic in o -
ma ion sys ems (GIS), me hods o spa ial analyses
and quan i ica ions as well as designs o a chaeo-
logical su eys.
S e an Baka dzhie The di ec o o he Region-
al His o ical Museum in Yambol, and chie assis an
p o esso a he Uni e si y o Lib a y S udies and
In o ma ion Technologies in So ia. His main in e es
is he egional a chaeology o sou h -eas e n Bulga -
ia wi h aspecial ocus on he Roman o Middle Age
pe iods. He is adi ec o o long - e m a chaeological
exca a ions in Kabyle (Roman pe iod) and Voden
(Middle Ages).
S udia He cynia, monog aphs 2
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
THE YURTA-STROYNO
ARCHAEOLOGICAL
PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace

S udia He cynia, monog aphs 2
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á – S e an Baka dzhie (eds.): The Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec .
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace.
P oo eading
Pe e Bowde y
Judd Bu den
F on co e : Ma ble head o a bea ded man (Asclepius?), 2nd–4 h c. AD; d awing by Ma in Če ný.
This wo k was suppo ed by he Eu opean Regional De elopmen Fund p ojec “C ea i i y and Adap abili y
as Condi ions o he Success o Eu ope in an In e ela ed Wo ld” ( eg. no.: CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/16_019/0000734)
implemen ed a Cha les Uni e si y, Facul y o A s. The p ojec is ca ied ou unde he ERDF Call
“Excellen Resea ch” and i s ou pu is aimed a employees o esea ch o ganiza ions and Ph.D. s uden s.
Exchange: Ins i u e o Classical A chaeology, Facul y o A s, Cha les Uni e si y, Cele ná 20, 110 00, P aha 1,
Czech Republic
Subsc ip ion: Cha les Uni e si y, Facul y o A s, Publishing House, nám. Jana Palacha 2, 116 38, P aha 1,
Czech Republic (books@ .cuni.cz)
Publishe : Cha les Uni e si y, Facul y o A s, nám. Jana Palacha 2, 116 38 P aha 1, Czech Republic
P in ed by Togga P ague
©Cha les Uni e si y, Facul y o A s, 2022
ISBN 978-80-7671-068-9 (p in )
ISBN 978-80-7671-069-6 (online : pd )
Con en s
P e ace o he book
The edi o s — 7
e His o ical and Topog aphical Seing o Yu a-S oyno
Pe a Tušlo á — 9
e Final Exca a ion Repo
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á – S e an Baka dzhie — 24
Sys ema ic Selec i e Su ey o Yu a-S oyno.
A Me hodological App oach o Si es Hea ily Dis u bed by Loo e s
Ba bo a Weisso á – Pe a Tušlo á – S e an Baka dzhie — 53
Shedding Ligh on A chi ec u e o Roman Ru al Selemen s in  ace.
Ce amic and S one Building Ma e ials om Yu a-S oyno
Ba bo a Weisso á — 70
e Milling Equipmen
Ba bo a Weisso á – Cla issa Hauben hal – Vě a Doležálko á — 90
in-Sec ion Analysis o Selec ed S one Objec s om Yu a-S oyno
Cla issa Hauben hal — 106
e Epig aphic Finds om Yu a-S oyno in a Regional Con ex
Pe a Heřmánko á — 118
e Numisma ic Finds
Pe a Heřmánko á — 133
e Te acoa Lamps
Robe F ece — 145
Me al Finds and T aces o Me allu gical Ac i i ies a Yu a-S oyno
Vik o ia Čisťako a – Jiří Kmošek — 155
A chaeological and A chaeome ic S udy o he Roman and La e An ique Glass
Vik o ia Čisťako a – Zuzana Zlámalo á Cílo á — 184
Selec ed Small Finds
Adéla Minaříko á — 245
Analysis o he Os eological Ma e ial om Yu a-S oyno
Mi iam Ný l o á Fišáko á — 259
Concluding Rema ks on he Resul s o he Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec
The edi o s — 271
Pla es — 275
7
P e ace o he book
e Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec (SAP)1 was ini ia ed as a ollow up o he Tundzha
Regional A chaeological P ojec (TRAP)2 which ocused on asys ema ic su ace su ey in he
de ined a ea o he Yambol Dis ic , in Sou h Eas Bulga ia. SAP s a ed in coope a ion o he
Regional His o ical Museum o Yambol3 and he Ins i u e o Classical A chaeology, Cha les
Uni e si y, P ague
4
in 2014, and ocused on he exca a ion o one o he su ace scae s
de ec ed by TRAP in 2010 nea he illage o S oyno (TRAP no. 6018) a ibu ed o aRoman
u al selemen locally known as Yu a. e ield p ojec was designed o h ee yea s and
included he selemen exca a ion and sys ema ic su ace su ey in he o m o o al pickups
egula ly dis ibu ed o e he si e, ollowed by se e al yea s o da a p ocessing and ma e ial
pos - documen a ion. Addi ionally, in 2019, in o de o gain compa a i e samples o Yu a-
-S oyno and o shed some ligh on he selemen s’ hin e land, o al pickups we e ca ied ou
on wo o he su ace scae s de ec ed by TRAP and da ed o he Roman pe iod. One o hese
is loca ed 2.5 km sou h - eas o Ka a elo o illage (TRAP no. 6021), ano he one 1 km sou h o
Robo o illage (TRAP no. 7023). Fu he , in 2016 and 2021, geological p ospec ions we e ca -
ied ou up o a15 km adius a ound he selemen . ey we e ocused on ock sampling o
compa ison wi h some o he a chi ec u al componen s ound wi hin he selemen as well
as on he iden i ica ion o clays sui able o poe y/a chi ec u al ce amic making, o iden i y
possible sou ces o local poe y p oduc ion. In 2021, ageophysical p ospec ion was conduc ed
on se e al a eas o highe su ace ma e ial concen a ions in he Yambol Dis ic , including
he Roman poe y scae sou h o Robo o illage (TRAP no. 7023); asimila bu bigge one
nea he illage o Koza e o; and asmall a ea nex o he Roman mili a y camp in Kabyle.
is publica ion p o ides he da a gained by SAP wi hin he i s yea s o he p ojec , in-
cluding he exca a ions and he su ace su ey o he Yu a-S oyno selemen . Despi e he
ield wo ks aking place om 2014 o 2016, se e al mo e yea s we e necessa y o p ocess he
da a o his inal s age. Wi hin hese yea s, many esea che s and s uden s we e aking pa
in he p ocess, including he ield wo ks i sel , ma e ial p ocessing, digi aliza ion, publica ion,
and consul a ion. All o hem ook an impo an place in he complex a chaeological p ocess
and wi hou hem, he success ul inaliza ion o he ield wo k, as well as o his publica ion,
would no be possible.
Ou deep g a i ude belongs o he ollowing colleagues (in alphabe ical o de ): Vik o ia Čisťa-
ko a, Tomáš Chlup, Vě a Doležálko á, Robe F ece , Cla issa Hauben hal, Jakub Ha lík, Hana
ŠoÐo á/Ha líko á, Pe a Janoucho á/Heřmánko á, Ba bo a Janů, Michaela Śmiejo á/Kello á,
Jiří Kmošek, Ma ké a Kobie ská, Tibo Liesko ský, Jose Ma eš, Do o hea Mildo á, Adéla Do ňák
-
o á/Minaříko á, Ma in Minařík, Mi iam Ný l o á Fišáko á, Anna Pe e ko á, Alexand a Rášo á,
Ma in S aka, Johana Tlus á, Ond ej T han, Zuzana Zlámalo á Cílo á and Ve onika Ženíško á/
Fo d. Se e al specialis s consul ed and imp o ed indi idual a icles; hese will be men ioned in he
ele an con ex s. Addi ionally, palaeobo anical samples we e discussed wi h Ca he ine Long o d
1 hps://uka . .cuni.cz/en/ esea ch/p ojec s/balkans/yu a-s oyno-a chaeological-p ojec /.
2e p ojec ook place in Yambol Dis ic in he yea s 2009–2010 and 2017–2018 in coope a ion wi h
Shawn Ross, Adéla Sobo ko á, Ilija Ilie / S e an Baka dzhie and hei eams, see hp://www.
undzha.o g/.
3 Rep esen ed by S e an Baka dzhie , Di ec o o he Regional His o ical Museum, and by his ep e-
sen a i e, Todo Vulche , wi h occasional suppo o o he colleagues om he museum, Mi osla
Koza e and Ya o Ruse . Finds we e es o ed by Geo gi Ilie , he main es o e o he RIM Yambol.
4 Rep esen ed back hen by PhD s uden s a he Ins i u e, Pe a Tušlo á and Ba bo a Weisso á.
14 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
o all hese h ee selemen s. Addi ionally, O udisza ad Bu gum, a oad - s a ion placed in he
sec ion unning om Kabyle o Had ianopolis (TIR 2012, 274), is supposed o be loca ed nea
he illage o Ka a elo o. Ano he Roman pe iod scae was de ec ed ca. 2 km sou h - wes
om he same illage, no h o he Ge enska Ri e (i.e. in he a ea no in es iga ed by TRAP).
e collec ed ma e ial has, howe e , no been u he e alua ed ye .
An al eady well - known Roman selemen is si ua ed 1.5 km sou h o Yu a - S oyno, a he
sou h - eas e n edge o he S oyno illage, in he a ea called S . Iliya. e si e was exca a ed
in 2014, 2020 and 2021 (Ag e– Diche – H is o 2015, 208–211; Ag e – Diche – H is o
2021) and in 2018 i was in es iga ed by he means o ageophysical p ospec ion (Diche 2018,
724–726). A ec angula illa - like s uc u e wi h ooms along he pe ime e walls was de ec ed
he e wi h aci cula building wi h an ou e diame e o 30 m placed in he middle o acen al
open squa e. Acco ding o in es iga o s, wo cons uc ion phases migh be de ec ed: 1s da ed
o 13/12 BC– AD 12; 2nd da ed o he end o he 1s c. and o he 2nd c. AD.6 Ihad achance o ob-
se e some o he ma e ial om he si e p io o i s exca a ion.7 Based on his obse a ion i is
possible o conclude ha , a leas in some pe iod(s), i was con empo a y wi h Yu a - S oyno
as well as wi h he p e iously men ioned si es nea Ka a elo o and Robo o.
6 Du ing he p e-p in co ec ions o his pape , he 2020 exca a ion epo o he si e nea S . Iliya
was published. e ounda ion o he selemen is app oxima ed he e o he 1s c. AD, while i s
decline o he mid-3 d c. AD (Ag e – Diche – H is o 2021, 879).
7e si e a S . Iliya was, as well as Yu a - S oyno, dis u bed by loo e s lea ing piles o ma e ial
(mainly poe y and glass) on he ield su ace. Compa ing hese objec s o he ones om he o he
si es in he a ea (Yu a, Ka a elo o and Robo o), he e is aclea o e lap based on which we may
suppose hese ou selemen s we e ac i e du ing he same pe iod, likely in he 2nd and 3 d c. AD.
Map 2: Selemen o Yu a nea he illage o S oyno wi h ma ked Roman pe iod si es in i s hin-
e land, including u al selemen s and exca a ed bu ial mounds.

15THE HISTORICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL SETTING OF YURTA-STROYNO
La e An iqui y (5 h–6 h c. AD) was a u bulen pe iod du ing which he selemen s in
 ace mo ed om he la lowlands o ele a ed posi ions, hei dimensions dec eased, and
hey we e hea ily o i ied. Since he a ea along he middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e
is mos ly la , he concen a ion o La e An ique selemen s in he a ea is sca ce.8 Ag ea
example is, howe e , he Dodopa on hill o loca ed abou 21 km wes om he Tundzha
Ri e , abou 30 km sou h-wes om Yu a-S oyno, which is da ed o he 6 h c. AD, he only
ele a ed La e An ique selemen (o e uge) om he dis ic which was comp ehensi ely
published. Dodopa on was well o i ied selemen , wi h i s inhabi an s engaged in ag i-
cul u e, me al p oduc ion (i on smel ing) and egional ade. An impo an sanc ua y o
Apollo was likely loca ed nea by (Sobo ko a– Long o d– Baka dzhie 2018).
A ound he mid-5
h
c. AD Kabyle los i s ole as amajo u ban selemen in he a ea.
Despi e being inhabi ed ill he 6 h c. AD (and la e again du ing he Medie al pe iod), i
became aci y o low impo ance, and he main adminis a i e and eligious cen e mo ed
o Tuyda, a o ess loca ed in ele a ed posi ion unde he S a a Planina Moun ains in
Sli en Dis ic , o e looking he Tundzha Ri e and he la lowlands o he Tundzha Ri e
ca chmen (TIR 2012, 72–73). Rega ding he u al a eas loca ed along he middle s eam o
he Tundzha Ri e , hey a e no ha densely popula ed as hey we e be o e, and he p e i-
ously men ioned selemen s nea Yu a - S oyno do no seem o be pe manen ly inhabi ed
in he La e An iqui y.
THE PHYSICAL SETTING OF YURTA-STROYNO
e selemen o Yu a - S oyno i sel is loca ed on he no he n pa o he Elho o munici-
pali y, abou 12 km eas om he Tundzha Ri e and ca. 1.5 km no h - eas om he illage o
S oyno. Since he e a e se e al o he Roman pe iod a chaeological si es nea he illage (e.g.
S . Iliya), he connec ion Yu a - S oyno is used o i s designa ion as he exp ession ‘Yu a’
was used o he selemen iden i ica ion al eady in he gazeee o a chaeological si es a
he Yambol Dis ic c ea ed in he 70s o he 20
h
cen u y (Dimi o a– Popo 1978, 26, no. 162).
e gazeee men ions ha se e al s one wall ounda ions we e unco e ed in he loca ion
du ing ploughing, oge he wi h a chi ec u al ce amics, poe y and se e al coins da ed up
o he mid-3 d c. AD.
Cu en ly, he exac loca ion o he a chaeological si e migh be ecognized only by he
su ace poe y scae co e ing abou 30 ha and sp eading along he igh bank o he De e-
o man Ri e which delimi s he sou he n bo de o he selemen . e De eo man Ri e is
abou one o h ee me e s wide and up o one me e deep; i emp ies in o he Tundzha Ri e
and i s cou se is nowadays con olled by h ee dams. Fu he sou h, igh nex o he i e ,
he ocky Bakadzhik Hill (282.7 m.a.s.l.) is loca ed, c ea ing ana u al ba ie o he i e
low, and pushing i s wa e s owa ds he selemen when he i e is looded. is na u al
phenomenon causes damage o he selemen and many s ones om a chi ec u al s uc u es,
oo - iles and poe y agmen s ha e been ound allen in he i e o washed by he i e
low along i s banks. A he no h - wes e n side o Bakadzhik Hill– acing o he selemen –
a isible no ch is cu in a ock, placed in asligh ly ele a ed posi ion, s e ching abou 200 m
om eas o wes . I is locally belie ed his is a es o a oad which was unning along he
8e e a e, in o al, en known La e An ique selemen s (poe y scae s da ed o ha pe iod) in he
Yambol Dis ic lis ed in he ca alogue o Dimi o a– Popo 1978 unde he ollowing numbe s:
5, 12, 23, 41, 59, 65, 82, 83, 114 and 166.
16 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
i e . No p ecise ch onology o his oad was de e mined9 and al hough i is emp ing o da e
i o he Roman pe iod, i migh da e as well o he Ooman imes.
e majo i y o he selemen sp eads along he igh bank o he i e . e i s 100–180
me es om he i e a e o e g own wi h ege a ion ep esen ed by g ass, sc ubs, and small-
o middle - size ees. e a ea ea u ing su ace ma e ial con inues u he no h - wes and
eaches in o ag a ian ields which a e ploughed on ayea ly basis. e loca ion o he no h-
e n pa o he selemen in ag icul u ally cul i a ed a eas causes he sp ead o he su ace
ma e ial o e as ields o ano he 400 m u he inland, howe e , he o iginal selemen
seems o be much smalle , loca ed owa ds he i e . Based on highe concen a ion o he
su ace inds as well as o cons uc ion ma e ial (bo h s ones and oo - iles) de ec ed by su ace
su ey o he TRAP, he o iginal selemen size was app oxima ed o be up o 3.5 ha (Map 3).
9 e o iginal plan o cuing he oad in hal was abandoned due o he ime es ic ions. e e was
no su ace ma e ial ound on he oad o a ound, no any p e ious in es iga ions aking place.
Map 3: Based on TRAP da a: polygons ma king he su ace scae sp eading in o he cul i a ed ields
om he Yu a-S oyno selemen ; he nucleus o he si e emained unsu eyed. On he sou h,
o e he De eo man Ri e , we may no e he oad cu in he slope o Bakadzhik Hill.
17THE HISTORICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL SETTING OF YURTA-STROYNO
e cu en land use o Yu a - S oyno su oundings is su p isingly eminiscen o he
ancien one. e whole middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e ca chmen unde wen ex ensi e
de o es a ion du ing he middle o la e B onze Age pe iods when o es s seem o ha e been
eplaced by g azing a eas, mainly o s ock b eeding, less o ag icul u al pu poses. Du ing
he I on Age, bo h pas o al and ag icul u al aspec s de eloped in o he landscape de o ed o
g ain cul i a ion and s ock b eeding, wi h limi ed a eas o woodlands on hills and nea by i -
e s as we may s ill see oday (Conno – He ies– Mooney 2018, 138–143). Dedica ion o he
su ounding land o Yu a - S oyno o ag icul u e and s ock b eeding migh be con i med by
inds om he selemen i sel – see, especially, he milling equipmen (Weisso á– Hauben-
hal– Doležálko á 2022) and he os eological inds (Ný l o á Fišáko á 2022), bo h in
his olume.
CREATION MYTH OF YURTA-STROYNO AND OTHER ROMAN SETTLEMENTS
IN ITS HINTERLAND
e beginning o he pe manen Roman p esence in he middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e
is s ill unclea . e i s objec s clea ly classi iable o he Roman ma e ial cul u e appea in
he bu ial g a es, en a i ely da ed o he end o he 1s – beginning o he 2nd c. AD. In aline o
illages Boyano o– S oyno– Bo iso o (Elho o municipali y), se e al such bu ial mounds we e
exca a ed, and indi idual g a es unco e ed, by Daniela Ag e. Speci ically, one bu ial mound
was exca a ed in he loca ion Koz Buna nea Boyano o, abou 4 km sou h-wes om S oyno
illage (Ag e 2010, Ag e 2013); a Roman g a e was unco e ed in so-called Rayko a mogila
1 km sou h om he same illage (Ag e 2007); and se e al o he mounds we e exca a ed in
he wes e n subu bs o Bo iso o, abou 2.5 km eas om S oyno illage (Ag e 2009; 2013) (see
Map 1). e unco e ed inds we e published in he o m o p elimina y o sho epo s wi h
some elemen al desc ip ion wi hou ocusing on speci ic pa allels and de ailed ch onology o
he indi idual indings. I ems om he ich bu ial mound o Bo iso o, whe e acha io wi h
yoked ho ses in si u was ound, a e o be seen in he E hnog aphic - a chaeological Museum
in Elho o. e ch onology o he exhibi ed inds can s e ch, indeed, om he end o he
1s c. AD, howe e , he i ems can also be da ed o he 2nd o e en 3 d c. AD. Fu he de ailed
s udies o he ma e ial and a chi ec u e s uc u es ound in hese g a es a e necessa y o
es ablish hei p ecise ch onology and consequen classi ica ion o he end o he 1s c. AD /
beginning o he 2nd c. AD.10 Puing hese da a in o he con ex , bu ial mounds wi h such
ea ly ch onology would p eda e he ounda ion o he mili a y camp in Kabyle ( ounded
in AD 135/136). I we accep such ch onology, an impo an ques ion is aised. Who a e he
10 Ra e cases o bu ial mounds well da ed o he 1s c. AD a e indeed known om Ancien  ace. In
Ka ano o illage in he S a a Zago a municipali y (126 km as he c ow lies om S oyno illage),
he so - called Eas e n Mound was exca a ed in 2008. e excep ionally ich g a e goods yield a -
iable ma e ials and i ems impo ed om he Roman Empi e including i on a mou , long and sho
swo ds, cu ed kni es, i on spea heads, sil e buckle and sil e ibulae, glass, b onze, and clay
essels, candelab um, b onze lamp, sil e pla e wi h embossed deco a ion, h ee gold ings wi h
gems and se e al coins, wi h he h ee la es once min ed du ing he eign o Empe o Tibe ius
(AD 14–37). e g a e goods also included wo sil e gilded cups wi h embossed deco a ion iden i-
ied as Bosco eale ype, p oduced in Roman a elie s a he beginning o he 1s c. AD. Based on he
ich a iabili y o di e en ma e ials and ypes o i ems, he g a e was da ed o he mid-1s c. AD,
ep esen ing one o he ea lies well - da able inding con ex o Roman impo s in Ancien  ace
(see Igna o – Gospodino – Bo iso a 2010, 247–249).
18 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
people bu ied in hese g a es? A e hese local  acian a is oc a s wi h connec ions o he
Roman Empi e and he ound i ems a e pu e impo s om I aly o /and o he Roman p o -
inces; o a e hey newcome s, al eady seled in he a ea, amilia wi h he Roman ma e ial
cul u e, possessing and u ilizing i ems p oduced locally? To y o answe his ques ion, i is
necessa y o combine ypological, s ylis ic, and a chaeome ic s udies o indi idual i ems,
and o ocus on sampling o aw ma e ials and p oduc ion was es ound on he selemen s
o compa ison. e i s such s udies s a o appea , wi h one good example o he de ailed
s ylis ic desc ip ion as well as elemen al analysis o abalsama ium ound in he bu ial
mound K al Meza nea Boyano o (Ag e– Diche – Ag e 2019). e balsama ium, as well
as he bu ial mound, is da ed o he e y end o he 2nd c.– 1s hal o he 3 d c. AD. Al hough
i does no con ibu e o he s udies o he ea ly yea s o he Roman p esence in  ace, he
de ailed and in e disciplina y app oach o he objec ound in ag a e ep esen s a u ning
poin in he app oach o ma e ial s udies.
e da e o he ounda ion o Yu a - S oyno is one o he main esea ch ques ions o
he SAP. As ou lined abo e, he Roman ma e ial cul u e in he a ea seems o appea owa ds
he end o he 1s – beginning o he 2nd c. AD. Howe e , he exis ence o aselemen wi h
as ong Roman cha ac e a he place o Yu a - S oyno o in i s immedia e icini y du ing
his pe iod emains an open ques ion. I is no an impossible hough as du ing he eign o
Empe o Vespasian, a ound AD 70, e e ans o Legio VIII Augus a ounded he colonia Fla ia
Pacis Deul ensium (Deul um) on he Black Sea coas , abou 70 km eas o Yu a - S oyno as
he c ow lies (TIR 2012, 93). Deul um quickly become an impo an ci y and ga e ise o
many illas, ici and nec opolises in i s hin e land (Balabano 2011, 107). In ou case, no
ha ing acen al selemen nea by du ing his ea ly pe iod, we would ha e o expec ha
he u al selemen s we e ounded he e p io o he cons uc ion o amajo adminis a i e
o mili a y cen e.
Ano he possibili y, in he Roman wo ld a he ypical, is aboom o u al habi a ions caused
by cons uc ion o amajo ci y o mili a y camp nea by. Applying his pae n o he a ea unde
discussion, he cen al selemen would be ep esen ed by he mili a y camp in Kabyle, ounded
in AD 135/136 and loca ed abou 34 km no h om Yu a - S oyno as he c ow lies. Du ing he
i s hal o he 2nd c. AD Roman  ace wi nessed majo in es men in acco dance wi h he
adminis a i e and poli ical changes. New u ban and u al selemen s we e ounded; he inne
in as uc u e o he p o ince was ei he main ained o newly buil . He e, we should emembe
he no h - sou h unning oad passing by Kabyle ollowing he s eam o he Tundzha Ri e
o Had ianopolis and Ainos/Aenos. E en i we conside he possible exis ence o ap e ious
connec ion in his di ec ion (as Kabyle was p e iously also awell - connec ed  acian ci y and
sanc ua y), he oad seems o be main ained, i no newly - buil , du ing he T ajan - Had ian
eign (Madzha o 2009, 32, 223, 237), acili a ing he mo emen along he middle s eam o
he Tundzha Ri e . Consequen ly, i is emp ing o g oup hese men ioned building ac i i ies
al oge he : he cons uc ion o he mili a y camp in Kabyle, he main enance/cons uc ion o he
oad connec ing he camp wi h he Aegean a ea and he ounda ion o u al selemen s along
he oad likely suppo ing Kabyle wi h i s p oduc s, as apa o bigge changes happening om
he T ajan - Had ian pe iod owa ds he 2nd hal o he 2nd c. AD. I we all o his in e p e a ion,
he 30s o he 2nd c. AD seem o ep esen an app op ia e s a ing poin o ex ended building
ac i i ies aking place along he middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e .
19THE HISTORICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL SETTING OF YURTA-STROYNO
THE MODERN HISTORY OF YURTA-STROYNO AND ITS HINTERLAND
e selemen in Yu a - S oyno is scien i ically known a leas om he 70s o he 20 h cen u y
when i was pu on he gazeee o a chaeological si es om he Yambol Dis ic (Dimi o a–
Popo 1978), bu e y likely e en o alonge pe iod. e i s disco e ies om he selemen
a e andom inds ‘acciden ally’ unco e ed a i s e i o y, nowadays s o ed in he a chi es o
he Regional His o ical Museum o Yambol. e e a e o e 50 known i ems, bu h ee o hem
o e g ea e in o ma i e alue conce ning he in e p e a ion, classi ica ion, and ch onology
o he selemen . e i s is aRoman - Do ic capi al o ype Iacco ding o Dimi o (2004,
221), da ed o he end o he 1s – beginning o he 2nd c. AD wi h adi ec pa allel om he illa
us ica in Cha alka, da ed o he 2nd hal o he 1s cen u y AD (Dimi o 2004, 222, ig. 42).
is capi al is made o ma ble and i s quali y o execu ion is excep ional compa ed o o he
capi als and column bases disco e ed a he selemen (Weisso á 2022, ig. 5:27). Based on
i s ch onological classi ica ion, i ep esen s he oldes da able i em unco e ed on he si e,
which opened adiscussion abou he ea ly ounda ion o Yu a - S oyno (app oxima ed o
he second hal – u n o he 1
s
/2
nd
c. AD). e second i em is he b onze mili a y diploma
o aClassis Misenensis e e an, da ed by Boyano o AD 152–158 (Boyano 2006, 239; 2007,
69–74). is ind pu abasis on iden i ica ion o he selemen as Roman icus, a illage o he
Roman a my e e ans. e hi d i em is alowe pa o ama ble slab likely depic ing a acian
ho seman (o a leas his ee ) wi h an insc ip ion men ioning aRoman amily name w ien
in G eek: A ilius (Baka dzhie 2008, 472; Boyano 2008, 214; Heřmánko á 2022, pl. 4/1:2).
In Kabyle, an insc ip ion wi h he same amily name was ound, which ini ia ed a heo y o
adi ec connec ion be ween Kabyle wi h Yu a - S oyno (Boyano 2008, 214). Rega ding he
ela i ely sho dis ance be ween hese wo ins alla ions, we may e en conside Yu a - S oyno
being loca ed wi hin he adminis a i e e i o y o Kabyle.
Besides he chance inds, ex ensi e loo ing ac i i ies a ec ed he selemen in 2004 causing
i se e e damage. As a eac ion o he dis up ion, he Regional His o ical Museum o Yambol
conduc ed a escue exca a ion in he yea s 2006 and 2007 o assess he damage and o p o-
ide he i s - hand obse a ion o he selemen , i s ch onology and ma e ial cul u e (Bak-
a dzhie 2007, 238–241; 2008, 471–473). Se e al wall ounda ions o houses we e unco e ed
and he gene al s a ig aphy desc ibed. Besides he mo e common inds, sil e an oninianus
o empe o Gallienus (AD 253–260) was e ie ed, as well as he i on head o aspea (Bak-
a dzhie 2008, 472, обр. 2) and ab onze human mask aachmen on ab onze pe o a ed
od (Baka dzhie 2007, 240, обр. 3). e ch onology o he selemen was app oxima ed o
be he 1s –4 h c. AD (Baka dzhie 2007, 240).
In he yea s 2009–2010, he Tundzha Regional A chaeological P ojec (TRAP) su eyed he
a ea be ween Ge enska and De eo man i e s b inging he aen ion back o Yu a - S oyno.
e si e was su eyed and newly documen ed unde TRAP no. 6018 (Sobo ko a– Ross– Ilie
2018; Ilie e al. 2012, 21–22). I was no ed du ing he su ey ha he loo ing ac i i ies a e s ill
in p og ess, u he damaging he selemen .
A eam om he Ins i u e o Classical A chaeology, Cha les Uni e si y in P ague egula ly
pa icipa ed in he TRAP ac i i ies, lea ning abou he a chaeology, his o y, and landscape
o he Yambol Dis ic . Consequen ly, he nex p ojec conce ning he in es iga ion o he
Yu a - S oyno selemen was ini ia ed in coope a ion o he Regional His o ical Museum o
Yambol and he Ins i u e o Classical A chaeology in P ague.

20 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
MAIN RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND AIMS OF THE YURTA-STROYNO
ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
e Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec was designed o h ee yea s o ield wo ks and
included h ee yea s o exca a ion (2014–2016) and one yea o su ace su ey (2016).11 e
decision was made o ocus on he p esumed nucleus o he selemen , p e iously iden i ied
by TRAP and loca ed nea he De eo man Ri e .
By he ini ia ion o he p ojec in 2014, no o he Roman u al selemen s had been sys em-
a ically in es iga ed along he middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e / in he Yambol Dis ic .
Consequen ly, he main objec i es o SAP in es iga ion s a ed wi h a he gene al ques ions
ocused on desc ip ion o he ch onological de elopmen o his speci ic selemen , iden i i-
ca ion o i s a chi ec u al cha ac e is ics and possible layou , and desc ip ion o i s ma e ial
cul u e, i s speci ics and a iabili y. Addi ionally, mo e conc e e ques ions we e asked, espe-
cially conce ning he ounda ion da e o he selemen and i s possible ela ion o he nea by
bu ial mounds p esumably da ed o he end o he 1
s
– ea ly 2
nd
c. AD, and o he mili a y camp
in Kabyle. Answe ing he ounda ion ques ion would acili a e ou unde s anding abou he
selemen s’ de elopmen along he middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e in he ea ly yea s o
he Roman pe iod and i migh hin a he s eng h o he in luence as well as a ailabili y o
he Roman ma e ial cul u e o he local  acian eli e by ha ime. Besides he ounda ion da e,
h ough he a iable ma e ial cul u e and language (insc ip ions), we aimed o unde s and
he o igin and cha ac e o he inhabi an s.
Se e al obs acles s ood in he way o p ope examina ion o he selemen . ey we e
loca ion speci ic and should be men ioned he e o an explana ion o he ac o s limi ing he
usage o pa icula a chaeological app oaches and me hodologies du ing he esea ch. One
o he main p oblems was he dense ege a ion co e ing he si e, pe sis ing e en in o he la e
au umn, and he ees co e ing he a ea close o he i e . Majo p oblems we e also caused
by he ex ensi e enches made by loo e s who exca a ed all a ound he selemen in o
conside ed dep h (ca. 1 m) and dimensions (up o 2.5×2.5 m), as well as he exca a ed soil ull
o s ones and a chi ec u e ce amics pilling up nex o hem, o e g own by ege a ion. e
esul ing moon - like su ace combined wi h dense ege a ion co e p o ed unsui able o
geophysical p ospec ion o o he non - des uc i e unde - g ound pene a ing measu emen s
which in gene al limi ed ou unde s anding abou he selemen disposi ion and a chi ec u e.
e men ioned condi ions also complica ed he su ace su ey since e e y examined poly-
gon had o be ex ensi ely cleaned om ege a ion using he scy he. Wi h his poin , we also
ouched he las majo p oblem we aced, he lack o wo ke s. e nea by illages a e no e y
popula ed and despi e o e ing easonable inancial condi ions o he emaining inhabi an s
in he illages, we we e e y oÞen unsuccess ul in hi ing hem on aday - o - day basis, and
consequen ly leÞ o wo k in lowe numbe s han planed and expec ed. Fo any u he ield
wo k in he a ea, i is necessa y o b ing wo ke s om mo e popula ed a eas, ei he om
Elho o o e en om Yambol.
e illegal exca a ions and damage caused o he selemen was e y se e e al eady
when SAP s a ed in 2014. e des uc ion o he whole si e is ha d o assess, bu based on he
exca a ed a ea, he dis u bance exceeds 50%. e selemen is hidden unde he Bakadzhik
Hill a om sigh o any illage and as such sui able o such kind o ac i i y. Consequen ly,
11 Exca a ion epo s we e egula ly published in jou nal SH: Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie
2014; Tušlo áe al. 2015; Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2017; Tušlo á– Weisso á–
Baka dzhie 2018; and in AOR: Baka dzhie – Koza e 2015, 2016, 2017.
21THE HISTORICAL AND TOPOGRAPHICAL SETTING OF YURTA-STROYNO
he exca a ions conduc ed by SAP we e a he unde s ood by us as escue exca a ion han
along - e m p ojec . AÞe all, besides all he abo e - men ioned easons, ano he aim o SAP
was o in es iga e as much as possible abou he selemen be o e he loo e s en i ely hinde
i s’ u he scien i ic explo a ions.
No o conclude on an en i ely pessimis ic no e, he obbe s’ enches ep esen ed small
es pi s b inging in e es ing in o ma ion abo e he g ound om a eas we did no manage o
exca a e in ap ope manne . Consequen ly, among small inds and a iable i ems o igina ing
om hei enches, he exca a ed soil e ealed concen a ions o i on slags, pieces o aw
glass and glass - making was e and pa s o a chi ec u al componen s. Due o his speci ic
su ace condi ion, he sys ema ic o al pickups could be applied o e he nucleus o he sele-
men wi h ag ea success, no only eco e ing wide ange o speci ic i ems bu also assigning
hem in o hei app oxima e spa ial con ex (see Weisso á– Tušlo á– Baka dzhie 2022).
ABBREVIATIONS
AB = A chaeologia Bulga ica
AOR = Археологически открития иразкопки
JRA = Jou nal o Roman A chaeology
SH = S udia He cynia
TIR = Tabula Impe ii Romani (I ano ed. 2012)
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през 2009 г., 247–249.
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e ko a– Conno (eds.) 2018, 146–156.
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Ross– Sobo ko a– Nekh izo – Tz e ko a– Conno (eds.) 2018, 200–210.
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ninge (eds.) 2015, 35–47.
Pe a Tušlo á
Ins i u e o Classical A chaeology
Facul y o A s, Cha les Uni e si y
Cele ná 20, CZ-11000, P ague 1
pe a. uslo a@ .cuni.cz
30 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
RESULTS OF THE EXCAVATIONS
THE FIVE-ROOM HOUSE
P io o ou in es iga ion, asmall pa o an unco e ed s one wall (abou 30 cm long) was
spoed a he sou h - wes e n pa o he selemen . is a ea was chosen as he s a ing poin
o he exca a ion, and he cen al squa e = he cen al ench, 100E_100N, was placed he e.
Wi hin he h ee yea s o exca a ion, he ini ial in es iga ed a ea was ex ended e ealing
wall ounda ions o a i e - oom s uc u e (Rooms A–E) wi h aached cou ya d on he no h.
e unco e ed s uc u e is o ien ed almos in an eas - wes – no h - sou h di ec ion wi h abou
10° inclina ion o he walls (Figs. 1–2). e wes e n oom o he s uc u e is no ully comple e
as i was dis u bed by he De eo man Ri e (Room A) and he eas - wes leng h o he p ese ed
ounda ion wall in his a ea is only up o 3.55 m. Rega ding he o he ooms, hei dimensions
in he eas - wes axis di e conside ably: Room B: 4.40 m, C: 4.15 m, D: 3.10 m, E: 4.77 m. Vice
e sa, he dimensions o he no h - sou h unning pe ime e walls and walls which sepa a e
he indi idual ooms, a e almos he same e e ywhe e, measu ing 4.75–4.85 m in each oom.
e maximal p ese ed dimension o he whole s uc u e om wes o eas is ca. 23 m. e
eas e n wall o Room E con inues ano he 7.5 m no h o e he s uc u e, measu ing, oge h-
e wi h he leng h o he oom, abou 13.5 m. e no h unning wall ends ab up ly as i was
exca a ed by he loo e s, and i s possible con inua ion could no be con i med.
e ounda ion walls o he s uc u e a e p ese ed up o 80 cm below he g ound (see
Fig.4 wall [SU003]). ey a e made o ine - g ained low - g ade ma ble which was locally qua -
ied (see Hauben hal 2022, sample no. 4). e ou e acing s ones o he wall ounda ions
a e bigge han he s ones in he middle; howe e , all a e qua y s ones and none o hem
is wo ked. e wid h o he wall measu ed on he uppe line o s ones s e ches om 50 o
70 cm. e pe ime e walls o he whole house s uc u e and he walls di iding he indi idual
ooms do no signi ican ly di e in wid h. Since he s uc u e is placed on agen le hill, slop-
ing om no h o sou h, he dep h o he ounda ion a ies, wi h deepe ones on he sou h,
shallowe ones on he no h. We may no ice he in en ion o keeping he uppe line o he
ounda ion wall o he whole house in one ele a ion. e eas e n pa o he house, including
he no he n ip o he wall [SU083] and he no he n and sou he n walls o Room E ([SU004] +
[SU002]) is in one line, wi h acons an heigh o he uppe pa o he ounda ion wall a ound
214.84 m.a.s.l. e no he n, eas -wes e n wall ([SU018] + [SU074]) also main ains asimila
ele a ion, howe e , he sou he n, eas - wes e n wall [SU002] d ops abou 50 cm down om
he u n o Room E/D owa ds he wes , o he beginning o Room B.4 Ad op abou 20 cm in
heigh om no h o sou h migh be also no iced on he inne no h - sou h placed walls, es-
pecially on [SU003] and [SU004]. is mo emen o he whole s uc u e is likely caused by
he icini y o he De eo man Ri e , which seems o dis u b he wes e n pa o he house
causing i s sligh sinking.
e e is no mo a o any o he solid binding ma e ial holding he indi idual s ones o-
ge he . Ne e heless, he e migh be soil wi h a ew poe y agmen s, o some small inds,
sp ead among he indi idual s ones. In se e al cases, b oken que n s ones we e inco po a ed
in o he uppe laye s o he ounda ion walls (see Weisso á– Hauben hal– Doležálko á
2022), in one case, also agmen o aho se ide elie was ound (see Heřmánko á 2022a,
4We a e coun ing he e he heigh o he eas e n co ne o Room B– he c oss sec ion o wall [SU002]
and [SU003], om he e u he wes he s one wall s ill d ops o ano he 20 cm, bu we can clea ly
see his a ea is seconda ily damaged.

31THE FINAL EXCAVATION REPORT
pl. 4/1:3). Rega ding he que n s ones, hei ch onological classi ica ion is di icul as simila
o ms and ypes we e used du ing he Hellenis ic pe iod. Howe e , he agmen o he ho se
ide elie can be clea ly da ed o he Roman pe iod. e same ch onology applies o he
inds om he soil sp ead among he s ones o he ounda ion walls. Consequen ly, we may
assume, spolia and soil ela ed o p e ious Roman pe iod habi a ion we e used o building
he ounda ion walls.
We can say lile abou he o iginal inne su ace o he indi idual ooms since hey p o ed
o be almos ully exca a ed by he loo e s below he loo le el. Howe e , he e is one excep-
ion, RoomD. is oom was (only) sligh ly dis up ed by he loo e s and ees, and g a el and
pebbles we e ound sp ead o e i s inne space in aheigh se e al cen ime es below he op
s one laye o he ounda ion walls (see below). I we conside he same se up o he whole
s uc u e, he bigges pa o he ounda ion walls would be bu ied unde g ound wi h only
se e al cen ime es isible abo e he g ound.
e e we e e y ew i ed b icks ound on he si e. Consequen ly, we may expec he up-
pe pa o he walls was o ahal - imbe ed adobe cons uc ion. No wood beams we e ound;
howe e , agmen s o mudb ick we e iden i ied in se e al o he di ches loca ed inside he
ooms, and on se e al places o e he in es iga ed a ea we e aes ed i ed agmen s o clay
wi h imp in ed wood beams. Addi ionally, se e al pieces o plas e pain ed whi e and one
deco a ed by a ed colou we e unco e ed, gi ing us an idea how he abo e - g ound cons uc-
ion could ha e been ea ed. In he le elling laye se e al agmen s o la ma ble pla es o
di e en hickness we e also ound, likely an in e io deco a ion (Weisso á 2022, ab.5:31–33,
pl. 1/3:31–33).
Wi hin he exca a ions, only oo iles ( egulae) o Laconian ype we e ound. e mos
common imb ices we e semi - o al in shape. Despi e none o hese being ully comple e, many
we e p ese ed in o conside able dimensions, wi h he bes examples o egulae measu ing
593+ mm in leng h and 406–420 mm in wid h and o imb ices wi h 244+ mm in leng h (see
Weisso á 2020, 71).
INDIVIDUAL ROOMS OF THE HOUSE
As men ioned abo e, he inne space o he house was almos ully exca a ed by he loo e s.
ei wo k was su p isingly p o essional, as hey i s ound pe ime e walls o he whole
s uc u e, iden i ied ou side/inside, and exca a ed only he inne space– he indi idual
ooms. e dep h o hei exca a ions a ied oom o oom, and excep Room D, i eached
well below he loo le el, wall o wall. In his manne , Rooms A, B, C and E we e exca a ed by
he loo e s, lea ing he emains o some (o iginal?) con ex s ei he in g ea e dep h, o jus
along he ounda ion walls (Fig. 3).
Room Ais he wes e nmos oom o he s uc u e. Only pa s o i s ounda ion walls we e
p ese ed, as he De eo man Ri e , and ag own ee on i s bank, c ea e i s wes e n bo de
and ei he limi ed i s u he exca a ion (as o he no he n wall [SU018]) o damaged pa
o i (as o he sou he n wall [SU002] which seems o be aken down by he i e ). Only he
eas e n pa o he inne space o he oom was exca a ed. He e, he yellow i gin soil [SU007]
was eached; no di ches we e ound.
Room B is he second wes e nmos oom, which is di ided om Room Aby he inne wall
[SU028], om Room C by he inne wall [SU003] and delimi ed by he pe ime e wall [SU018]
on he no h, and [SU002] on he sou h. e inne space o he oom was ully exca a ed by
32 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Fig. 1: Final g ound plan o he exca a ed house a Yu a-S oyno,
in scale 1:20. D awn by SAP eam, digi ized by M. Kobie ská.
33THE FINAL EXCAVATION REPORT
34 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Fig. 2: Pho o mosaic combining ad one pho o a¨e he exca a ion season in 2015 and o hopho os o
2014 and 2016. By O. T han and P.Tušlo á.
he loo e s o he i gin soil [SU007]. Abig allen ee was lying on he sou h - eas e n co ne
o he oom, p e en ing asmall pa o he a ea om he illegal exca a ion (see Fig. 3). He e,
unde he opsoil, adi ch o dimension 70×45 cm, abou 20 cm deep was ound, which was dug
di ec ly in o he i gin soil. e ill [SU021] o his di ch was ich on inds, ea u ing amix u e
o di e en poe y classes, including ampho ae agmen s o D essel 24 Family. Se e al o
he poe y agmen s had ancien b eaks which joined oge he . Fu he , se e al e acoa
lamps we e e ie ed (F ece 2022, ab.1:1, 6–8, 20); one blue hexagonal glass bead (Čisťak-
o a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, ab.6:1); one space bobbin (Weisso á 2022, ig. 4:26); and
se e al i on nails om oo cons uc ion and doo deco a ion. e e was e y small amoun
o animal bones (Ný l o á Fišáko á 2022, ab.2).
All he ma e ial om he ill [SU021] was compa ably less agmen ed han he one no -
mally e ie ed om RT soil [SU001]. Because i also p ese ed se e al comple e inds, we
may qui e con iden ly s a e, i escaped he mode n loo e s aen ion. I s mixed cha ac e and
placemen (unde he o iginal loo ) howe e sugges i migh ha e been connec ed o some
olde di ch, which could ha e been made any ime aÞe he house des uc ion. Rega ding he
cha ac e o he inds ound in he di ch, his does no seem o be aloo ing ench, unless i
would be done in an iqui y, when e acoa lamp and glass bead would no ha e had a alue
o he inde , who was looking o mo e p ecious i ems such as non - e ous me als, gold/
sil e coins, jewelle y, e c.
35THE FINAL EXCAVATION REPORT
Fig. 3: Di ision o Room B and C wi h he RT soil [SU001] co e ing he emaining con ex s dug unde
he inne loo o he house. On he le¨ o he wall [SU003], in Room B, we may see he su ace o
[SU021] o iginally co e ed by a b anch o a ee. In he same oom, he e e se s a ig aphy may
be no iced, wi h oo iles and o he hea y objec s placed on he boom o he RT soil [SU001].
Room C is he cen al oom o he s uc u e, which is di ided om Room D by he inne wall
[SU004], wi h ape ime e wall [SU018] on he no h and [SU002] on he sou h. is oom
p ese ed he mos complex a chaeological si ua ions wi h se e al di ches unco e ed unde
he RT soil [SU001] dug in o he i gin soil [SU007], speci ically [SU008], [SU029], [SU036]
and [SU057] (Fig. 4).
[SU008] is a ill o adi ch, which seems o ha e simila cha ac e as [SU021] in Room B,
bu i is much bigge (145×105 cm) and deepe (65 cm). Among he di e se poe y classes,
se e al agmen s o D essel 24 Family and Kapi än II ampho ae we e unco e ed (Tušlo á
2022, SY14_070, SY14_071); also qui e high di e si y o animal bones was iden i ied (Ný l o á
Fišáko á 2022, ab.2). F om he small inds is especially no able he ma ble head o bea ded
man b oken o asmall s a uee (Minaříko á 2022, ab.1:1); u he h ee blue glass beads,
wo hexagonal, o he same ype as ound in [SU021] (Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022,
ab.6:2–3), and one o ounded o m (Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, ab.6:8); comple e
bone pin (Minaříko á 2022, ab.1:8) and many i on nails om oo cons uc ion as well as
om doo deco a ion.
[SU029] is a ill o adi ch loca ed on he no h - wes e n co ne o RoomC. I was pa ly ex-
ca a ed he i s yea (2014) when, o e i , he mass o ano he n p o ile o squa e 100E_100N
was laid. Only a iangula - shaped co ne was isible unde he p o ile. e co ne was ex-
ca a ed o he boom– o adep h o 54 cm. e e we e e y ew inds, including one body
agmen o aglass essel and a ew undiagnos ic pieces o poe y and AC. e soil was g ey,

36 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Fig. 4: Room C wi h pho os o indi idual si ua ions in a ious s a es o exca a ion– [SU008], [SU029],
[SU036], [SU057]. Up: a¨e emo ing he RT soil [SU001]– no he n p o ile; [SU029] wi h an exca-
a ed co ne , [SU057] be o e exca a ion. Middle: be o e emo ing he RT soil [SU001]– no he n
p o ile, wi h [SU008] exca a ed o i gin soil [SU007]. Down: an example o he ounda ion wall
[SU003] unning in asligh inclina ion in no h-sou h di ec ion di iding Room B and C. Pho os
by P.Tušlo á.
37THE FINAL EXCAVATION REPORT
loose wi h g a el and pebbles. In 2015, aÞe he no he n p o ile o he squa e 100E_100N
was emo ed, he ea u e was cleaned on he su ace o de ine i s bo de s (ca. 173×100 cm)
and leÞ unexca a ed.
[SU036] ep esen s a iny s ip o b ownish laye p ese ed close o he s one wall, he
ounda ion ench. is is he only place om he whole Room C whe e he ounda ion ench
was iden i ied. I seems i was p ese ed due o he mo emen o he uppe s one laye o he
ounda ion wall owa ds sou h, sligh ly o e hanging he lowe s one laye s, and p o ec ing
hei icini y om he loo e ’spickaxes and shawls. is iny s ip o b ownish colou p o ed
o be qui e signi ican o he whole exca a ions. Besides se e al iny poe y she ds and
glass agmen s, i also e ealed one b onze coin, which was li e ally s uck o he ounda ion
wall. e coin is da ed o Se e an Dynas y, and i is a a e issue o Diadoumenian min ed in
Cyzicus in AD 217–218 (Heřmánko á 2022b, pl. 5/1:8) which gi es us e minus pos quem o
cons uc ion o he ounda ion walls.
[SU057] is an up o 1.22 m deep ill o adi ch ca. 1.45×1.12 m loca ed in no h - eas e n co ne
o RoomC. e soil he e was o da k - g ey colou , cha ac e is ic o high amoun o cha coal
including iny o se e al cen ime es big pieces which we e sp ead in all le els o he ill.
Se e al bigge s ones we e ound on i s uppe hal oge he wi h agmen s o oo - iles and
wo big chunks o mudb icks (Fig. 4). e e was qui e asmall amoun o agmen ed poe y
and glass, some bones (Ný l o á Fišáko á 2022, ab.2), pieces o mo a and i on i ems–
especially nails om a oo and doo deco a ion. Among he poe y a e iny agmen s o ine
wa e and cooking wa e, oÞen e y agmen ed wi h ancien b eaks joining oge he , such as
he case o a ying pan econs uc ed ou o 11 small pieces o o aclay unguen a ium base,
pu oge he ou o i e agmen s (Tušlo á 2022, SY15_340, SY15_338). Among he small inds
we may ind one clay oken made om D essel 24 Family ampho a; one hexagonal glass bead
(Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, ab.6:4); wo wo ked bones (Minaříko á 2022, ab.1:11,
13); and again, as in all di ches so a , se e al i on nails om a oo and doo deco a ion. Also
o in e es is he ambe colou ed glass agmen o amould blown essel, da ed o he 4 h–6 h
c. AD (Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, pl. 7/6:144),5 and ano he coin o he Se e an
Dynas y, his ime o Ioulia Domna min ed in Anchialos in AD 193–217 (Heřmánko á 2022b,
pl. 5/1:6). e high amoun o cha coal, many iny agmen s o mo a , se e al pieces o mud
b icks and e y agmen ed poe y gi e adi e en cha ac e o his ill compa ing o [SU008]
and [SU021]. I seems o be a he connec ed o some emains o des uc ion. Fo i s in e -
p e a ion, he agmen o he ambe colou ed glass, likely da ed o he La e An iqui y, which
is mixed wi h o he ma e ial da ed o he 2nd–4 h c. AD, such as he oken made o D essel 24
Family ampho a, he hexagonal bead, o he coin o Ioulia Domna, migh also be o impo ance.
is mix u e could ha e been c ea ed by adi ch dug h ough he cul u al laye abo e he loo
le el o Room C du ing he La e An iqui y (o la e ), subsequen ly illed wi h he exca a ed
ma e ial mixed wi h some des uc ion laye and occasional objec s o la e ch onology.
Room D is he second eas e nmos oom o he s uc u e. e oom pe ime e walls a e
[SU074] on he no h and [SU002] on he sou h. e di ision om Room C is p o ided by he
inne wall [SU004], and om Room E by [SU062]. Being 3.10 m in wid h, i is he na owes
oom in he s uc u e. Besides ha , he e a e se e al o he speci ic phenomena o his oom.
e no he n ounda ion wall [SU074] seems o be conside ably shallowe han he o he
5 e e we e in o al ou agmen s o he ambe colou ed glass iden i ied in Yu a - S oyno, he
o he h ee we e ound du ing he su ace su ey (see Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, pl.
7/6:141–143).
38 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
walls o he s uc u e,6 ea u ing (only) 2–3 laye s o s one (a ound 30 cm) (Fig. 5). Ano he
in e es ing phenomenon o his oom is he lack o in e es o he loo e s in i s exca a ion,
as hey ha e dug only se e al small enches up o/o jus sligh ly below he loo le el. e e
does no seem o be an ob ious eason o his beha iou , he e we e no main obs acles limi -
ing he access o co e ing he su ace (besides h ee small - size ees on he no he n pa o
he oom). Addi ionally, on each o i s sides, a ully exca a ed oom is loca ed. We may y o
6 No all he ounda ion walls had been exca a ed below he lowes s one laye , consequen ly, we
canno s a e ha his is he only place o he whole house, whe e he wall is shallow. Howe e , we
can compa e i wi h Room C, whe e pa s o he ounda ion walls wa e pa ly unco e ed in all ca -
dinal di ec ions including he no he n wall [SU018], o which he wall [SU074] is acon inua ion.
e walls o compa ison a e he wes e n wall [SU003], he sou he n wall [SU002], and he eas e n
wall [SU004] o RoomC. e heigh o all hese walls is in a ange o 70–85 cm.
Fig. 5: Pho os o RoomD. Up, le¨: he inne pebble loo pa ly damaged by oo s o ees wi h he
e acoa ube in si u; up, igh : he ou e a ea sou h o he wall [SU002]. Middle: a agmen o
he ho se ide elie inco po a ed in o he wall [SU002] (le¨). Down: he compa a i ely shallow
no he n wall [SU074] o RoomD. Pho os by P.Tušlo á and J. Tlus á.
39THE FINAL EXCAVATION REPORT
look o he eason in he cha ac e o he oom i sel . Pe haps he loo e s ound ou h ough
se e al small sondages ha he oom is no as ich in inds as he o he ones and leÞ i u he
unexca a ed. e u h is, ha we ha e indeed e ie ed a e y small numbe o inds om
he oom. Rega ding i s s a ig aphy, below he opsoil, scae ed agmen s o oo iles we e
hi , placed on acompac g ey soil compound o g a el and pebbles, he loo le el [SU013].7
Addi ionally, one big s one o oughly squa e shape was se in he loo close o he cen e
o he oom and a e acoa ube was ound sunk in si u unning almos in pa allel wi h he
wes e n wall [SU004]. Unde he loo le el, he yellow i gin soil was hi [SU060].
Wi hin he g a el and pebbles, e y agmen ed poe y was sp ead, including pieces o
D essel 24 Family ampho ae, ed - slipped poe y da ed o he 2nd–4 h c. AD, se e al glass ag-
men s including one wi h elie snake - h ead deco a ion da ed o he 3 d c. AD (Čisťako a–
Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, ab.5:100), one ound glass bead wi h doed deco a ion (Čisťako a–
Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, ab.6:13) and one e acoa igu ine (Minaříko á 2022, ab.1:4).
While cleaning he sou he n ounda ion wall [SU002] o Room D, pa o ama ble elie
o aho se ide was ound inco po a ed in o he uppe s one laye , placed by he wo ked side
up (Heřmánko á 2022a, ab.1, pl. 4/1:3) (Fig. 5). In he same sec ion o he wall [SU002] abig,
wo ked s one (ca. 56×28 cm, 25 cm in heigh ) was laid on he uppe laye o he ounda ion
wall, placed in no h - sou h di ec ion co e ing all i s wid h. I is in e es ing ha his s one
has he same ele a ion o 214.84 m.a.s.l. as he eas e n (no sunken) pa o he house, while
he wall [SU002], on which i is siing, is al eady 35 cm below his numbe . Pe haps he s one
was compensa ing o he heigh o he wall a he ime he house was al eady sinking in o
he g ound.
Since he g ound condi ions in his a ea we e a ou able (i.e. no ees no enches), we
ha e ex ended he exca a ed a ea sou h om Room D ou side o he s uc u e (105E_100N
SE). He e, unde he opsoil [SU020], laye 8 wi h he simila cha ac e is ic as he loo le el
[SU013] inside o Room D was unco e ed. e ou e a ea was compound o compac g ey soil
co e ed by g a el, pebbles, and iny agmen s o AC; i was also loca ed in he same heigh
(ele a ion) as he loo le el inside RoomD. We can qui e con iden ly assume his is awalking
su ace. No inds, besides he AC agmen s, we e unco e ed on he su ace.
Room E is he eas e nmos oom o he s uc u e, sepa a ed om Room D by he inne wall
[SU062], wi h he pe ime e wall [SU074] on he no h, [SU002] on he sou h and [SU076] on
he eas . Be o e any in es iga ion, we could see an unna u ally looking heap o soil on his
place. AÞe cleaning he su ace om ege a ion, i was qui e clea , his a ea had also been
exca a ed by he loo e s (Fig. 6). To con i m ou assump ion, a2×2 m sondage was placed in
he NW sec ion o squa e 110E_100N. e sondage was led o he yellow i gin soil [SU058].
Adi ch o dimensions 56×50+ cm, 84 cm deep, was ound wi hin he sondage, unde he RT
soil [SU001], dug di ec ly in o he i gin yellow soil. I s ill [SU061] was ich in AC, espe-
cially in ooÞiles, and in big - size s ones. Besides ha , i con ained se e al agmen s om
h ee di e en essels, including en agmen s o one casse ole (c ea ing abou 60% o he
whole essel); h ee body agmen s o D essel 24 Family ampho a (Tušlo á 2022, SY15_349,
SY15_348); and i e body agmen s o asmall jug. Many agmen s had old b eaks which joined
oge he . e cha ac e o his ill is simila o he ma e ial accumula ion o [SU021] in Room
B and [SU008] in RoomC. No o he ea u es we e ound in he sondage, and i was indeed
7 See Tab.2: [SU013] = [SU014] = [SU045] = [SU046] = [SU053] = [SU054] = [SU063] = [SU066].
8 Composed o [SU044] + [SU049] + [SU050].
46 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Fig. 11: D awing econs uc ion o he exca a ed house buil di ec ly on i s g ound plan. is econ-
s uc ion wo ks wi h ahypo hesis o an ele a ed wooden loo placed on he s one ounda ions
(howe e , wi h necessa y suppo ); ano he possibili y would be placing he wooden beams o
he loo di ec ly on he g ound lined wi h pebbles which would equi e no addi ional suppo .
No ice he e acoa wa e ube unning in pa allel o he wes e n wall o RoomD. Recons uc-
ion by B. Janů.
e ounda ion walls do no bea any signs o in e up ion o en e ing he indi idual ooms
(nei he om ou side, no om oom o oom). e one oom wi h ap ese ed inne loo
(Room D) shows, ha he ounda ion wall was sligh ly ele a ed in compa ison o he loo
le el. is combina ion seems o sugges he applica ion o an ele a ed wooden loo es ing
on he ounda ion walls, as well as using wooden h eshold beams o e he ounda ion walls
o en e ing and passing om oom o oom. Since he a ea which is necessa y o b idge
wi h he wooden loo in each oom is qui e la ge (min. 3.1×4.7 m, max. 4.77×4.85 m), i had o
be ei he laid on some ype o suppo (such as bigge s ones o small columns)16 as known,
e.g., om Dichin (Poul e 2019, 69–77) o he beams suppo ing he loo would ha e been
di ec ly placed on he inne loo . e second possibili y seems o be plausible in ou case, as
he beams suppo ing he loo could be es ing di ec ly on he inne g a el and pebble loo
which, by i s cha ac e , a oids mois u e abso p ion.17 Addi ionally, he wood beams could be
smea ed wi h clay o p o ec ion. S uc u ally, he suppo beams would be laid om no h
o sou h while indi idual beams o he loo would be laid om eas o wes (Fig. 11).
is hypo hesis o an ele a ed loo (and i s layou ) is suppo ed by he posi ion o he
e acoa ube unning in pa allel o he wall [SU004] which would be hidden unde he
loo nex o one o he suppo ing beams. In he unco e ed loo scena io, he e acoa
ube would be hal p o uding om he inne loo which would make i mo e ulne able
o b eakage and unpleasan o walking. e e acoa ube seems o be pa o ad ainage
sys em, di e ing he wa e om he oom, as i s loca ion nea he De eo man Ri e and on
agen le slope migh cause looding.
Un o una ely, we canno compa e he si ua ion wi h he o he ooms o he house, whose
loo le els a e no p ese ed. Addi ionally, he e migh e en be apossibili y ha Room D,
on which we build ou hypo hesis, migh ha e se ed adi e en unc ion. Room D is he
only oom wi h bigge wo ked s ones placed on, o nea by, i s long walls. Combining his
16 Room D, on which we build ou in e p e a ion, ea u es one bigge unwo ked s one placed close o
he cen e o he oom. is s one could ha e played he ole o he loo suppo ; howe e , mo e
equen dis ibu ion o suppo ea u es would be necessa y o hold he en i e loo .
17 I he loo would be only om abea en soil, placing he beams di ec ly on he g ound would enable
he mois u e o soak easily in o he wood.

47THE FINAL EXCAVATION REPORT
obse a ion wi h o he cha ac e is ics o he oom, such as i s smalle dimensions and e y
small numbe o inds unco e ed abo e he loo le el, we may hink o i s speci ic unc ion.
e well wo ked ec angula s one ou side o i s no he n wall [SU074] migh ha e se ed as
as ep, placed in on o he en ance o he oom. e o he s one on he sou h o he oom,
di ec ly siing on he wall [SU002], migh ha e se e al explana ions. Rega ding he d op
o he heigh o he house, i migh ha e been an aemp o aise he ounda ions, o o ele-
a e he en ance. I could ha e been also o iginally placed on he wooden h eshold beams,
somehow ein o cing he en ance o he oom. ese a e, o cou se, jus hypo heses, which
would allow us o in e p e Room D no only as he en ance oom o he whole s uc u e,
bu also as in e connec ing oom om which i could be possible o en y Room C (and hus
also Aand B) and Room E.18 Consequen ly, i would be possible o en e /exi he oom on he
no h, om he cou ya d, and likely also on he sou h, in he possible di ec ion o ano he
house, o aside s ee .
e wes e n end o he house was hea ily dis u bed. Abig pa o he ounda ion walls
o Room Ais comple ely missing; howe e , he s ones a e no concen a ed a ound, as in he
case o he no he n wall [SU083], no is he e ahole dug in he ounda ions by he loo e s.
e whole si ua ion looks old and clean. We may specula e, ha he walls we e looded, and
he s ones aken by he i e in he pas . is ac ion could ha e also caused wa e logging o
he a ea and sinking o he sou h - wes e n co ne o he house. Whe he his e en migh ha e
happened du ing he Roman pe iod o la e is impossible o judge.
e esul ing disposi ion o he exca a ed house looks simila o he so - called long-/s ip-
houses, which a e known om ci ilian selemen s, as well as om ici loca ed nea by mili a y
camps. ese a e elonga ed houses wi h sepa a ed li ing qua e s o he amily membe s a
he back o he house wi h aya d, and wi h a oom acing he s ee , which was used as ac aÞ
wo kshop, abe nae, o o s o ing and selling di e se goods. ese houses had solid pe ime e
walls, while he in e io walls we e ligh , easy o mo e and emodel (Wilson 2019; Somme
2012, 82, 84).
19
e inne wid h o he bigges oom o ou house is 4.85 m, adding he hickness
o he ounda ion walls (52–68 cm), we ge almos 6 m house wid h. e cu en leng h o he
house is ca. 23 m, howe e , i is no ully p ese ed and we may expec i o be o iginally up o
24–25 m. ese dimensions i well in o he ange o he s ip - houses o Con inen al Eu ope20
desc ibed by Somme , which a e da ed om he Fla ian pe iod o la e , and whose wid h is
in he ange o 6–9 m and he leng h o 22–40 m (Somme 2006, 125).
I we accep such an in e p e a ion, i would be Room E which would be acing he s ee /
oad. We could also expec ano he en ance o he oom om ou side as i would ac as inde-
penden subjec . Room E is he bigges oom o he house, which is sepa a ed om he o he
h ee ooms o simila dimensions by he smalles oom o all– RoomD. is sepa a ion could
sugges i s di e en use. E en hough his in e p e a ion seems plausible, we do no ha e any
p oo o he s ee loca ed on he eas , as his a ea was no exca a ed.
18 Since he e a e no p ese ed h esholds, his is jus aspecula ion which is, howe e , based on
adisposi ion o he s ip-/long - houses, whe e i is common o ha e one en ance om he long
side and one om he oom acing he s ee (c. . Somme 1997, Abb. 10).
19 Fo he s ip - house isualisa ion see he mili a y icus in Ru enho en: hps://de.wikipedia.o g/wiki/
Da ei:Limeseum_-_Modell_Ru enho en_5.jpg; hps://de.wikipedia.o g/wiki/Da ei:Limeseum_-_
Modell_Ru enho en_3.jpg and a econs uc ion in Houses eads: hps://www.english-he i age.o g.
uk/ isi /places/houses eads- oman- o -had ians-wall/his o y/ esea ch/ ( isi ed 8/2/2022).
20 e s ip - houses in G ea B i ain a e smalle (4.5–6 m × 15–20 m), so a e he Eu ope Con inen al
ones du ing he ea lie pe iods (see Somme 2006, 124).
48 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
e cou ya d on he no h is no acha ac e is ic ea u e o he s ip - houses, which com-
monly ha e aya d a he ea o he house. Pe haps in his pa o he selemen , nea he
De eo man Ri e , i was no possible, o easible, o ha e adedica ed backya d a he end o
he s uc u e and he a ea on he side o he house could ha e been used o di e se ac i i ies
ins ead.
THE LEVELLING LAYER
e no he n cou ya d o he house was co e ed by he so - called le elling laye , which is
abou 40 cm hick, composed o an h opogenic ma e ial mixed wi h s ones and soil. I was
sp ead in en ionally, a once, al hough in se e al laye s, mixing di e en a ios o soil, s ones,
and he ma e ial.
e an h opogenic ma e ial o hese sub - laye s was o iginally aken om one sou ce, as
many agmen s, ound in di e en enches exca a ed o e he cou ya d and in di e en
sub - laye s, joined oge he . Based on he cha ac e o he inds, we may suppose he sou ce
was selemen was e/dump. E en he me hod o laye ing seems o be in en ional, placing
hea y and bulky i ems in o he lowes laye s. Conside ing again he nea by p esence o he
De eo man Ri e , asui able in e p e a ion o he laye seems o be an in en ional ele a ion
o he a ea and d ainage, which would help he as abso p ion o excess wa e – as in he
case o looding, bu as well as in acase o ain, since he gen le hill on which he house is
buil slopes om no h o sou h– owa ds he i e - oom house. is in e p e a ion would also
suppo he sugges ion ha he wo ked ec angula s one ound no h o Room D unc ioned
as as ep o he doo o he house, ele a ing he en ance and sepa a ing i om he a ea o
he cou ya d p one o loods.
THE CHRONOLOGY
e ma e ial unco e ed in ela ion o he house is no e y ch onologically sensi i e. Com-
bining his ac wi h dis u bed and mixed con ex s, ei he ecen ly by he loo e s ( he RT soil
[SU001]), o in an iqui y ( he le elling laye ), he ch onological classi ica ion o he inds had
o be based mainly on o he ma e ial published om Bulga ia and elsewhe e.
E alua ing he ma e ial om he exca a ion, objec s da ed in o he ime span o he 1s –6 h
c. AD ha e been ound. e majo i y o hem, howe e , seem o be ela ed wi h he pe iod o
he 2nd–4 h c. AD wi h some o e laps in o he ea lie and la e pe iods (see Čisťako a– Zlám-
alo á Cílo á 2022; Heřmánko á 2022a, 2022b; F ece 2022; Tušlo á 2022). Ne e heless,
he e a e se e al agmen s o essels among he poe y and glass which seem o be e en
la e , da ed om he 4 h/5 h o 6 h/7 h c. AD (Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, ab.5:35,
50–51, 93–94; Čisťako a– Kmošek 2022, ab.4:7; Tušlo á 202221).
Rega ding he exca a ed house, ahin o i s cons uc ion pe iod seems o be he coin o
Diadoumenian, min ed in Cyzicus in AD 217–218 (see Heřmánko á 2022b, pl. 5/1:8), disco -
e ed in he ounda ion ench o he no he n wall [SU074] o he house. In gene al, coins
migh ha e s ayed in ci cula ion o e y long ime and despi e Diadoumenian issues being
eplaced sho ly aÞe his dea h in AD 218 by min age o Elagabalus, some o his coins could
21 e la es well aes ed ch onology is o he anspo ampho a SY15_237 classi ied as ype Keay
LXIIQ / Albenga 11–12 om No he n A ica, which can be da ed om he mid-5
h
c. AD ill he
mid-6 h c. AD (see Tušlo á 2022 and o he la e ampho ae: SY14_126, SY15_216, SY15_427, SY15_547,
SY16_H13_NW_03).
49THE FINAL EXCAVATION REPORT
ha e been s ill a ound. In all cases, he ounda ions o he house we e buil ei he a he ime
o he coin deposi ion, i.e. a he end o 20s o he 3 d c. AD, o la e . e a ea had o be al eady
inhabi ed a he ime o he house cons uc ion, as pa s o b oken que n s ones (Weisso-
á– Hauben hal– Doležálko á 2022), agmen o he ho se ide elie (Heřmánko á
2022a) and pieces o Roman poe y we e inco po a ed in o he ounda ion walls o he house.
Puing his in o ma ion oge he , we may conclude ha he exca a ed house was buil a o
nea by he al eady es ablished Roman selemen a he end o he 20s o he 3 d c. AD o la e .
e le elling laye , sp ead up o e he house’sno he n cou ya d, ea u ed ag ea mix u e
o ma e ial o wide ch onology, mos ly subs i u ed by he agmen s o objec s da ed o he
2nd–3 d c. AD (see Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022; Heřmánko á 2022a; Heřmánko á
2022b; F ece 2022; Tušlo á 2022). e e we e howe e se e al o he agmen s, which
seems o sugges he e minus pos quem o he laye placemen . ese a e agmen s o ine
ed - slipped essels and cooking essels o ypes da ed om he 4 h o 5 h c. AD o 6 h/7 h c. AD
(Tušlo á 2022),
22
he e acoa lamp depic ing A hena da ed o AD 300–325 (F ece 2022,
ab.1:4, pl. 6/1:4), and he im o an A ican anspo ampho a da ed om he mid-5 h c. AD
o mid-6 h c. AD (Tušlo á 2022, SY15_237). ese objec s sugges he laye was sp ead du ing
he 4 h o e en 5 h c. AD.23 I we assume he house cons uc ion ook place no long aÞe he
dea h o Diadoumenian, i would be adi e ence o one o wo cen u ies be ween hese wo
ac ions. O cou se, i he cons uc ion o he house ook place la e in ime, i would sho en
he gap be ween hese wo e en s o make hem e en simul aneous. e need o a aised loo
a he cou ya d migh be aconsequence o loods, change o low o he De eo man Ri e , o
jus adjus men o he house layou which migh ha e happened any ime du ing i s li espan.
e 4
h
and 5
h
c. AD we e uns able imes in  ace, connec ed wi h pe sis ing aids o
go hic ibes and Huns, leading o se e al majo e en s happening in  ace, including he
Bale o Had ianopolis a AD 378 and o majo de as a ion o selemen s a ound he mid-5 h
c. AD (Velko 1977, 38–42). In ligh o hese his o ical da a, he le elling laye , in e p e ed
as acompound o selemen was e, migh ha e been also c ea ed by des uc ion deb is, e-
lec ing hese e en s and he house/selemen clean up. We should, howe e , also poin ou ,
he e is no di ec e idence o iolen con lic unco e ed on he a ea o he house o among
he p ocessed ma e ial om he selemen .
When did he exis ence o he house come o an end emains an open ques ion. We may
expec he cou ya d adjus men in he 4 h–5 h c. AD had o be bene icial o someone, so he
ac o laying down he le elling laye i sel seems o sugges con inua ion o he house, and
pe haps as well o he selemen , aÞe hese p oposed da es. Howe e , since jus alow amoun
o ma e ial e ie ed om he selemen da es om he 5 h c. AD on, he house / selemen
exis ence does no seem o con inue o ha long o accumula e asigni ican cul u al laye .
e di ches [SU008], [SU021], [SU057] had o be made aÞe he house abandonmen , as
hey each unde he loo le el o he inne ooms, and hey combine asimila mix u e o
ma e ial as he le elling laye – he majo i y o ea lie agmen s wi h single la e - da ed piec-
es– and as such include he comple e ch onology o he house and he le elling laye . ese
di ches could ha e been made any ime aÞe he house abandonmen and be o e he mode n
loo ing ac i i ies.
22 Poe y agmen s nos.: SY15_263, SYP16_108, SY15_485, SYP16_127, SYP16_117, SY15_356, SYP16_114,
SY15_254, SYP16_128.
23 e e is enough ma e ial aes ed o he 4 h c. AD. e e a e less, bu s ill some, inds da ed o he
5 h c. AD o la e .
50 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
CONCLUSION
e h ee - yea exca a ion unco e ed a i e - oom house wi h acou ya d on he no h p o ec -
ed by awall on he eas . e house was buil on ounda ions o locally a ailable qua y s one
wi hou asolid binde , which we e holding an uppe s uc u e o hal - imbe ed adobe con-
s uc ion, co e ed by agabled oo made o Laconian ype ooÞiles. Based on he house’sou e
dimensions (ca. 6×24–25 m), i p obably had only one loo , which, howe e , does no exclude
he possibili y o an aic. e uppe walls we e e y likely co e ed by whi e - ed plas e , p o-
ec ing he cons uc ion made o he o ganic ma e ial om des uc i e wea he condi ions.
e exca a ed house does no seem o be much di e en om he p o incial a chi ec u e.
e closes pa allel o i s disposi ion a e he so - called long-/s ip - houses which a e ex emely
common o ici ype o selemen s. ey combine li ing qua e s a he ea pa o he house
and indus ial/comme cial a eas acing he s ee . I his pa allel is co ec , we may expec
he bigges oom o all, Room E, o be acing he s ee unning on he eas o he house in he
no h - sou h di ec ion.
A he ime o he house cons uc ion he e was al eady aRoman selemen exis ing in
he a ea as pieces o que n s ones, aho se ide elie , and agmen s o Roman poe y we e
inco po a ed in o he ounda ion walls. e coin o Diadoumenian min ed in Cyzicus in AD
217–218 was ound in he wall ounda ion ench, da ing he cons uc ion o he house o he
la e 20s o he 3 d c. AD o la e .
e no he n cou ya d o he house was co e ed by a35–40 cm deep le elling laye , e y
ich in ma e ial, likely e e ing o selemen was e o des uc ion deb is. e le elling laye
was in en ionally sp ead in se e al sub - laye s con aining ma e ial om he same sou ce as
many agmen s o e he sub - laye s and om many me es apa joined oge he . e ma e ial
was mainly da ed o he 2nd–4 h c. AD wi h se e al agmen s ex ending he ch onology in o
he 5 h/6 h c. AD. e laye seems o unc ion as ele a ion/d ainage, likely connec ed wi h he
p oximi y o he De eo man Ri e as well as wi h he ac , he house was loca ed on agen le
hill sloping om no h o sou h. Consequen ly, he cou ya d on he no h o he house migh
ha e abso bed he ainwa e be o e eaching he house.
e cons uc ion o he house in ela ion o he le elling laye is inconclusi e. Wha we
can clea ly s a e is, ha he house was cons uc ed aÞe he yea AD 217–218, and he laye was
sp ead in an unspeci ic ime du ing he 4
h
o 5
h
c. AD. Two scena ios migh appea in ela ion
o how much weigh we gi e o he ind o he Diadoumenian coin in he house ounda ions
and i s sugges ed sho ci cula ion. Fi s , he house was buil a ound he ime o he coin dep-
osi ion, and he le elling laye was sp ead abou one o wo hund ed yea s la e ; second, he
house was buil oge he wi h he le elling laye in acou se o he 4 h o 5 h c. AD. Elabo a ing
on he second possibili y and conside ing he numbe o da able inds, he 4 h c. AD seems o
be much likely han he 5 h c. AD which is ep esen ed by single inds only. In all p obabili y,
we will ne e be able o say which o hese scena ios is co ec , howe e , wha we can say, is
he app oxima e ch onology o he a ea o he exca a ed house a Yu a - S oyno based on he
densi y o inds and hei ch onological classi ica ion. e majo i y o all objec s om a iable
ma e ials migh be da ed o he 2nd–4 h c. AD, when he selemen was a i s peak. Much less
o he inds migh be da ed in o he ime ange o he 5 h–6 h c. AD, sugges ing some ac i i y
was aking pa on he selemen , o i s hin e land, also du ing he la e pe iod, howe e o
alimi ed ex end.
51THE FINAL EXCAVATION REPORT
ABBREVIATIONS
AOR = Археологически открития иразкопки
SH = S udia He cynia
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Pe a Tušlo á
Ins i u e o Classical A chaeology
Facul y o A s, Cha les Uni e si y
Cele ná 20, CZ-11000, P ague 1
pe a. uslo a@ .cuni.cz
S e an Baka dzhie
Regional His o ical Museum o Yambol
Byalo mo e 2, BG-8600, Yambol
&
Uni e si y o Lib a y S udies
and In o ma ion Technologies
Tsa ig adsko Shose Bl d. 119, BG-1784, So ia
s _baka jie @ab .bg
Ba bo a Weisso á
Ruh - Uni e si ä Bochum
Ins i u ü A chäologische WissenschaÞen
Am Be gbaumuseum 31, D-44791 Bochum
ba bo a.weisso a@ ub.de
53SYSTEMATIC SELECTIVE SURVEY OF YURTA-STROYNO
Sys ema ic Selec i e Su ey o Yu a-S oyno.
AMe hodological App oach o Si es Hea ily Dis u bed
by Loo e s
Ba bo a Weisso á– Pe a Tušlo á– S e an Baka dzhie
ABSTRACT
e las season o he Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec ocused on asys ema ic su ace su ey o he
selemen . e su ey was conduc ed on wo le els, he i s one including a ho ough explo a ion o all
he inds in selec ed a eas using o al pick - ups, and he second one, su eying he emaining o e g own
a eas aiming o de ec a chi ec u al and ma e ial emains isible among he hick ege a ion. e su ey
explo ed 1.64 ha wi hin 41 polygons o 20×20 me es, he o al pick - ups co e ed 0.32 ha wi hin 32 squa es
o 10×10 me es. e explo a ions b ough o ligh conside able amoun s o ma e ial, which was quan i ied
and e alua ed in i s spa ial con ex and u he p ocessed wi hin he indi idual ma e ial s udies. e su ey
design applied a Yu a - S oyno helped us o de elop and adjus he me hodology sui able o si es wi h
su aces hea ily dis u bed by easu e hun e s.
KEYWORDS
Sys ema ic su ey; o al pick - ups; quan i ica ion; unc ional analysis; su ey me hodology.
INTRODUCTION
e Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec (hence o h SAP) was o iginally designed as an
exca a ion p ojec only.1 e i s wo seasons we e conduc ed in 2014 and 2015 and ocused
on he exca a ion o ahouse loca ed in he sou h - wes e n pa o he selemen (Tušlo á–
Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2022). Howe e , besides he exca a ed a ea, su p isingly la ge
amoun s o a chaeological inds we e de ec ed haphaza dly all a ound he expec ed sele-
men . Among he mo e in e es ing disco e ies made wi hin hese wo yea s belong he ind-
ing o mel ed glass agmen s oge he wi h a ew pieces o aw glass, se e al concen a ions
o slag, and asingle ind o asimple shaÞ o acolumn wi hou lu ing (Tušlo áe al. 2015,
249, pl. 10/6).
e eason o he ichness o he su ace inds a Yu a - S oyno is he poo p ese a ion
o he selemen as i had been ex ensi ely explo ed by loo e s sea ching o p ecious objec s
using me al de ec o s and exca a ing as enches, lea ing behind many open digs o di e en
sizes and dep hs. e dis up ion o Yu a - S oyno can e en be seen on he sa elli e images
such as on he one cap u ed in 2015 (Map 1). Al hough he image y enables he quan i ica ion
o he loo ing based on he numbe o isible obbe s’ enches a ha ime, his numbe
o e s only aminimal dis up ion o he selemen . As he exca a ions p o ed, he a eas wi h
no dis up ions de ec able on he su ace oÞen e ealed e e se s a ig aphy caused by illici
1 e selemen o Yu a - S oyno had al eady been explo ed by a sys ema ic pedes ian su ey in
he amewo k o he Tundzha Regional A chaeological P ojec in 2009–2010 (Rosse al. eds. 2018).
54 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
exca a ions. is phenomenon comes abou due o he longe i y o he loo ing p ocess, wi h
olde enches being illed wi h soil exca a ed om he newe ones.
Despi e he ala ming s a e o he selemen ’sp ese a ion which migh be wi hou ex-
agge a ion desc ibed as ca as ophic, ou obse a ions sugges ed ha he su ace inds we e
no mo ed a om hei o iginal loca ions. Fi s ly, he exca a ed ma e ial was ei he used
o ill he nea by enches o piled igh nex o he illegal digs and, secondly, he g adien o
he su ace is minimal and induces only negligible e osion p ocesses. ese condi ions make
he selemen sui able o asys ema ic su ace su ey, aiming o he de ec ion o di e se
ma e ial concen a ions o e he a ea, seing up he ch onology o he selemen and dis-
ce ning di e en phenomena including he cha ac e and unc ion o he inds. Wi hou such
ahea ily dis u bed su ace, wi h enches oÞen eaching adep h o 100 cm, i.e., well below
he opsoil, analogical aims would only be possible wi h p ope exca a ions.
METHODOLOGY
e su ey design was based on he p e ious wo ks conduc ed in he a ea, ca e ul obse a ions
o he dis ibu ion o he inds iden i ied in 2014 and 2015, hick ege a ion co e and, las bu
no leas , he manpowe o e ed by ou eam.
Map 1: Sa elli e image y cap u ed in 2015 wi h ma ked loo ing enches showing he ala ming ye
only minimal deg ee o dis up ion o Yu a-S oyno.
55SYSTEMATIC SELECTIVE SURVEY OF YURTA-STROYNO
Yu a is si ua ed some 1.5 km no h - eas o he mode n illage S oyno and i lies be ween
a as ploughed a ea o he no h and he densely o e g own Bakadzhik Hill o he sou h.
e selemen is si ua ed jus a he oo o he hill, on asu ace gen ly sloping owa ds he
De eo man Ri e , wi h ag adien no exceeding 4.5 pe cen .
Acco ding o he gazeee o a chaeological si es in he Yambol Dis ic (Dimi o a–
Popo 1978, 26), he selemen o Yu a was al eady known in he la e 1970s when i s su ace
was dis up ed by ploughing and e ealed he ounda ions o walls, a chi ec u al ce amics and
Roman poe y. e sa elli e image om 1975 (Map 2) con i ms he su ace o he selemen
was indeed ploughed a ha ime.
e ex en o he selemen was a chaeologically documen ed no ea lie han du ing
he sys ema ic pedes ian su ey conduc ed by he Tundzha Regional A chaeological P ojec
(TRAP) in 2009 (Ilie e al. 2012, 21–22, si e no. 6018; Sobo ko á– Ross– Ilie 2018, 146–156).
e deb is o ma e ial connec ed wi h he selemen was de ec ed dis ibu ed o e a as a ea
co e ing 30 ha. Unlike in he 1970s, only he no he n pa o he associa ed su ace concen-
a ion was epo ed as loca ed in he ha owed ield wi h good su ace isibili y. e sou he n
pa was desc ibed as o e g own wi h ege a ion and s udded wi h obbe s’ enches o he
poin ha i p o ed e y di icul o walk.
As ollows om hese epo s, he ag icul u al ac i i ies we e a some poin limi ed, mos
likely because he nucleus o he si e e ealed a oo many s ones om he building ounda-
ions as well as la ge loose a chi ec u al s ones which e icien ly p e en ed he su ace om
being u he ploughed.
Map 2: Sa elli e image y cap u ed in 1975, he ex en o Yu a-S oyno is en i ely ploughed o e .
62 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
imb ices, b icks a e only a e a icles. Coa se wa es include di e en o ms o cooking wa es
(po s, ying pans, casse oles and hei lids); anspo ampho ae a e mainly ep esen ed by
body agmen s, om he diagnos ic inds, ampho ae o he D essel 24 amily and Kapi än II
a e he mos equen ones. S o age essels encompass dolia, o he mos pa body agmen s
and hei hick ims, howe e , some bases and lids made o wo ked iles we e also ound.
e quan i ied spa ial analysis o he poe y g oups isualised on Map 4 shows a epea ing
pae n o se e al clus e s, especially isible in he sec o s D13 SW, F13 SE and G12 NE. Al hough
he amoun s o he inds pe 100 sq. me es ea u e s iking di e ences be ween he lowes
and highes densi ies, ade ailed examina ion shows ha hey can be di ec ly associa ed wi h
he p esence, numbe s, sizes and dep hs o he obbe s’ enches and piles o ma e ials. Fo
ins ance, he highes amoun s o almos all he ma e ials we e iden i ied in G12 NE, wi h i s
su ace en i ely des oyed by illici loo ing, e ealing h ee obbe s’ enches ex ending o e
20 sq. me es wi h adep h eaching one me e and wi h piles o s ones and soil co e ing mo e
han 25 sq. me es. Con a iwise, he lowes amoun s o all he ma e ials we e de ec ed in he
sec o I09 NE which was no des oyed by any enches and did no e eal any piles.
Despi e he luc ua ing densi ies depending on he dis up ion o he e ain, he su ey
also e ealed se e al ou lie s, such as he second la ges concen a ion o s o age essels in
J13 NE, asec o o minimal dis up ion, e ealing a he insigni ican amoun s o o he kinds
o poe y. Al hough i is emp ing o in e p e i as aclus e o s o age acili ies, lea ing
a isible imp in on he su ace, he high weigh is caused by he gene ally g ea weigh o
dolia. When conside ing hei quan i ica ion, he ou lie in J13 NE is ep esen ed by asingle
im and a iing body agmen and as such poin s o he exis ence o asingle dolium wi hin
he sec o .
Diagnos ic poe y she ds including ims, bases and deco a ed body agmen s we e doc-
umen ed sepa a ely. e whole poe y assemblage om he su ace su ey was compa ed
wi h he ma e ial ound du ing he house exca a ion. e same unc ional classes as well as
he majo i y o wa es we e iden i ied among hem. Rega ding he able essels, he majo i y
o he whole ma e ial included ed - slipped wa e and also g ey wa e, bo h possibly o local
(eas e n Balkan peninsula) p oduc ion, bu also Çanda lı wa e / Eas e n sigilla a C (F13 SW,
F13 NE), he so - called Colou coa ed wa e (D13 SE, F13 SE) and in - walled ed - slipped wa e
(E12 SE, G12 NE, G12 NW, D13 SE) was iden i ied. Wheel made and handmade cooking essels
we e p esen in he same wa es and o ms as in he exca a ed a ea. Rega ding he anspo
ampho ae, he mos abundan diagnos ic agmen s a e o he D essel 24 Family (G12 NE, H13
SE/NE, I09 SE, I12 SW, I12 SW), Kapi än II (G12 SE, F13 SW) and Rhodian ampho ae (G12 NW, J13
SE), wi h indi idual agmen s o he ype Ephesus 56 (H13 NW), o he eas e n Medi e anean
ampho a (D13 NW) and one agmen o an ampho a wi h apossible A ican o igin (H13 SE).4
e majo i y o he poe y migh be da ed o he 2nd–4 h c. AD wi h se e al agmen s wi h
apossible a ibu ion o he 5 h–6 h c. AD. Among he inds om he su ace su ey he e we e
also some p ehis o ic agmen s including a iangula ho izon al handle o he “Asseno e s”
ype da ed o he La e B onze Age (c. . H is o a 2019, ig. 12:80).
e su ey inds en iched no only he poe y assemblage bu also he o he ma e ial
s udies (Map 5). e a chi ec u al ce amics con i med he u ilisa ion o Laconian iles and
imb ices o he oo ing sys ems, b icks appea ed o be a a e ind all a ound he nucleus. One
in e es ing b ick was howe e ound in G09 SW, bea ing ag a i i made be o e i ing. e
b ick was analysed in he s udy o he epig aphic e idence (Heřmánko á 2022a, pl. 4/2).
4 Fo he poe y s udies om Yu a - S oyno see Tušlo á 2022.

63SYSTEMATIC SELECTIVE SURVEY OF YURTA-STROYNO
Se e al obbe s’ enches e ealed he ounda ions o houses in si u, al hough mos o
hem we e al eady des oyed and leÞ on he su ace in he o m o piles o s ones. is s a e
o p ese a ion howe e helped us o no ice ha he unco e ed ounda ions we e made in
he same way as he exca a ed house– by unwo ked qua y s ones pu oge he wi hou
any bonding which acili a es hei disman ling; u he , in he ew cases o he p ese ed
ounda ions in si u, we may con i m hei walls ollow he o ien a ion o he exca a ed house.
Rega ding indi idual a chi ec u al componen s, besides he andom ind om 2015 ep-
esen ed by he cylind ical s one (Weisso á 2022, no. 30), he su ey de ec ed wo mo e
agmen s o columns (capi als/bases see Weisso á 2022, nos. 28–29) and ou la ge wo ked
s ones, u he examined and in e p e ed wi hin he s udy o he ce amic and s one building
ma e ials (Weisso á 2022) and hin - sec ion analyses (Hauben hal 2022, nos. 1–5).
e collec ion o milling equipmen was en iched by ou agmen s o o a y que ns, o
which h ee we e u he analysed and iden i ied as wo conical and one hemisphe ical ca illus
(Weisso á– Hauben hal– Doležálko á 2022, nos. 2, 5, 7, 9).
Besides nume ous glass agmen s de ec ed all a ound he su eyed nucleus, he o al pick-
-up in D13 SW con i med he exis ence o aglass wo kshop sugges ed al eady in 2015 by se e al
inciden al inds. e sec o e ealed a as collec ion o glass p oduc ion was e ep esen ed by
h eads, d ops, mel ed agmen s and moils, agmen s o aw glass and aculle o seconda y
mel ing (Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, pl. 7/7). Among a e bu in e es ing glass inds
belong he ambe colou ed agmen s da ed o he 4 h–6 h c. AD and he im o apla e/bowl o
he same ch onology ound in F13 SW, H13 NE and D13 SE (Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á
2022, ab.5:93–94, 35) and he wo da k blue glass b acele s da ed o he Ea ly Medie al pe iod
om E12 NW, F13 SW (Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022, ab.6:16–17).
Me allu gical ac i i ies aking place a Yu a - S oyno we e con i med by inds in G13 NW
which e ealed an accumula ion o asmel ing u nace lining. Fu he mo e, sec o s I12 SW
and F14 NE disclosed smel ing slags, and K12 NE and G13 NW o ging slags. e mos abundan
me al inds a e o nails o di e se sizes (146 pcs.), he la ges concen a ions being ound in
polygons E09 (28 pcs.), G12 (26 pcs.), D13 (26 pcs.) and E12 (17 pcs.) (Čisťako a– Kmošek 2022,
nos. 25–47). Besides hese, he me al inds om he su ey e ealed se e al kni es, punches,
awls, agmen s o chains and wo keys (Čisťako a– Kmošek 2022, nos. 11–13, 18–21, 61, 63).
Among he mos in e es ing small me al inds is one Roman pe iod ing ound in sec o
D13 NW and one c oss - shaped pendan om F13 SE, da ed o he Middle Ages (Čisťako a–
Kmošek 2022, nos. 8–9).
Rega ding he small inds, we should also men ion ab onze coin p obably o T anquillina
issued in Anchialos (F13 SE; Heřmánko á 2022b, ab.1:9, pl. 5/1:9); a e acoa wheel om
aho se ide oy known om apoe y wo kshop in Bu o o (J09 NW), abone pin (G12 NE)
and abone dis a deco a ed wi h he depic ion o adog (D13 SW) (Minaříko á 2022, nos. 5,
17 and 19). e e acoa lamps we e e y agmen ed, ou o 46 agmen s o lamps iden i ied
du ing he su ey only wo could be classi ied in o aspeci ic ype, bo h belonging o he g oup
o Bildlampen, Loeschcke ypes I–V(F ece 2022, nos. 31–32).
e ma e ial s udies e ealed se e al ch onological ou lie s no alling wi hin he 2nd–4 h
c. AD, which is he pe iod ep esen ed by he majo i y o all he inds. Map 6 depic s he spa-
ial dis ibu ion o inds da ed o he (possibly) La e An ique and Medie al pe iods. e La e
An ique pe iod is ep esen ed by agmen s o glass and poe y, which, dis ibu ed a he
haphaza dly in ele en sec o s, e ealed one de ec able small clus e o six pieces wi hin wo
neighbou ing sec o s H13 NW and NE. Glass agmen s we e de ec ed in se en pick - ups and
encompass agmen s o pla es / bowls and he emains o body deco a ions. A esse a, da ed
e y b oadly be ween he Roman and Ea ly Medie al pe iod, cons i u es aunique single ind.
64 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Map 5: Finds (besides poe y) de ec ed du ing he o al pick-ups as well as whils su eying he
o e g own polygons.
65SYSTEMATIC SELECTIVE SURVEY OF YURTA-STROYNO
Despi e i s ch onological classi ica ion migh be wide, i was on he Map 6 included in o he
La e An iqui y. Poe y was de e mined in se en sec o s, ollowing asligh ly di e ing dis ibu-
ional pae n han he glass and encompassing se e al agmen s o g ey wa e dishes, coa se
wa e po s and anspo ampho ae. e dispe sion o he inds poin s o some u ilisa ion o
he selemen , al hough a a a he negligible scale when compa ed wi h he Roman pe iod.
e Medie al pe iod is ep esen ed by ou single inds including an i on key, apendan
in he shape o ac oss made o b onze and wo agmen s o glass b acele s. ey a e all clus-
e ed in h ee sec o s o wo polygons espec i ely wi hin he no he n pa o he nucleus.
As hey all ep esen pe sonal i ems which could ha e been simply los whils a elling, hey
do no con i m any kind o selemen in he e i o y o Yu a - S oyno du ing he Medie al
pe iod bu may sugges an exis ence o a ou e o oad c ossing he a ea du ing his pe iod.
DISCUSSION
e examina ion o he dis ibu ional maps o he poe y did no e eal any clea ly iden i i-
able clus e s poin ing o di e en uses o he su eyed a eas. e luc ua ing numbe s a he
seem o esul om he deg ee o he des uc ion o he su ace bu hey do no allow us o
iden i y a eas wi h di e en unc ions wi hin he selemen , as he numbe s o he ypes
Map 6: Dis ibu ion o inds da ed o La e An ique and Medie al pe iods.
66 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
keep ising and declining wi hin each sec o nea ly analogically, e ealing only insigni ican
a iances.
Compa ed wi h he inds om he exca a ion, he su ey poe y e ealed analogical unc-
ional classes as well as wa e ypes. An in e es ing phenomenon is ep esen ed by dolia, as he
exca a ion e ealed only one single diagnos ic agmen (a im) wi h ce ain y iden i ied as
apa o adolium. e su ey, howe e , b ough o ligh 33 diagnos ic agmen s ep esen ed
by ims/bases/lids and many mo e body agmen s. e pic u e gi en solely by he inds om
he house would hinde any in o ma ion ega ding he s o age acili ies, howe e , he su ey
con i med he common p esence o dolia wi hin he inhabi ed a ea.
e ield su ey con i med he cha ac e is ics and o ien a ion o he s one ounda ions
obse ed du ing he escue exca a ions conduc ed in 2006 and 2007 by he RIM (Baka dzhie
2007, 238–241; 2008, 471–473) and du ing he exca a ions o he house by SAP (Tušlo á–
Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2022, ig. 2). e su ey e ealed pa s o ounda ion walls scae ed
all a ound he su ace, in a e cases in he o m o comple e wall sec ions unco e ed du ing
illici exca a ions and s ill leÞ in si u, o , o he mos pa , in he o m o piles o s ones dug
ou by he easu e hun e s and si ua ed igh nex o he illegal digs. e analysis o he a -
chi ec u al emains shows ha he ounda ions o he houses we e wi hou excep ion made
om local unwo ked s ones wi h simple ea h bonding. e ounda ions leÞ in si u oughly
ollow he o ien a ion o he walls documen ed du ing he exca a ion and poin o acommon
a chi ec u al plan o he whole selemen , o ien ed almos in an eas - wes – no h - sou h
di ec ion wi h abou 10° inclina ion o he walls.
e dis ibu ion and densi y o he a chi ec u al ce amics d ew apic u e compo ing
wi h he poe y dis ibu ion, luc ua ing based on he dis u bance o he su ace. e basic
ma e ials used o he a chi ec u e o he selemen we e in a iable, c ea ing he image o
he whole selemen wi h houses buil in opus c a icium and wi h oo s co e ed wi h Laconian
iles in he egula-imb ex sys em (Weisso á 2022, ig. 2). Besides hese uni o m a chi ec u al
componen s, he selemen e ealed h ee ou lie s ep esen ed by he cylind ical s one si u-
a ed in E11 NW and he wo agmen s o columns’ heads/base disco e ed in D13 SE (Weisso á
2022, nos. 28, 29, 30).
Fu he mo e, he su eyed nucleus enclosed wo wo kshops. e inds in D13 SW, si ua -
ed in he no h o he a ea, include accumula ions o glass p oduc ion was e, aw glass and
aculle o seconda y mel ing. ese inds unambiguously poin o he exis ence o aglass
wo kshop in he su eyed sec o . Al hough he ela ion is no clea , he glass wo kshop was
disco e ed in he immedia e icini y o he column’shead and he head/base.
e sec o G13 NW, si ua ed in he eas e n pa o he a ea, e ealed an accumula ion o
emnan s om asmel ing u nace lining, aes ing o me allu gical ac i i ies. e glass and
he me allu gical wo kshops lie on he no h– sou h axis, some 40–50 me es om each o h-
e , and hey we e bo h likely in eg a ed in o he common a chi ec u e o he selemen as
inhe en pa s o he housing.
e s udy o he inds de ec ed du ing he su ey con i ms he main ch onology o he
selemen , also e ealed du ing he exca a ions, spanning be ween he 2nd and 4 h cen u y
AD. Only spa se inds da e o he La e An iqui y and hei e en dis ibu ion o e he su eyed
a ea does no show any limi ed bo de s o he si e in compa ison wi h he p e ious pe iod.
e selemen was a he slowly decaying, wi h inds oughly sp ead all a ound i s o me
e i o y. Se e al inds om he Medie al pe iod, cha ac e ised by pe sonal i ems mos likely
los when c ossing he a ea, poin o he abandonmen o he selemen and o he possible
exis ence o a oad o ou e c ossing he a ea.
67SYSTEMATIC SELECTIVE SURVEY OF YURTA-STROYNO
In ligh o he esul s we we e able o d aw om he collec ed inds, he applied me hodol-
ogy needs o be delibe a ed. e collec ing s a egy we de eloped assumed ala ge unc ional
a iabili y h oughou he su ace. Ou main aim was o co e uni s o compa able sizes,
and 10×10 me es seemed pe ec ly iing as hey c ea e well compa able su aces o 100 sq.
m. is app oach, howe e , did no allow us o conside he obbe s’ enches and piles o
ma e ials as closely connec ed uni s, since hey we e na u ally dispe sed all a ound he si e
ega dless o he ou lined g id. As such, i was acommon phenomenon ha a obbe s’ ench
was si ua ed in one sec o and apile o ma e ial coming om he ench in he neighbou ing
one. On he one hand, o an o e iew o ma e ials dispe sed on he su ace, i s assigna ion
o apa icula obbe s’ ench does no play ap incipal ole. On he o he hand, o amo e
de ailed unc ional analysis in he spa ial con ex , i would be c ucial o concen a e on he
eco ding o he p ecise sizes and posi ions o each ench and pile and collec he ma e ials
sepa a ely. In his case, he goal would be o calcula e he olumes o he piles and enches,
so ha hey can ideally be assigned o each o he .
Conside ing he sizes o he ooms o he house exca a ed by SAP, spanning be ween
3.10 × 4.75 me es and 4.77 × 4.85 me es each (Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2022, 30),
amo e p ecise eco ding could ha e allowed us o iden i y he cha ac e s and unc ionali-
ies o pa icula ooms dis u bed by loo e s. A he same ime, howe e , he di ision o he
su ace in o a egula g id should no be al e ed, as i s ill allows o auni o m eco ding,
quan i ica ion and compa ison o he da a. e esolu ion o he g id plays ac ucial ole
and he e is no auni e sal one o be ecommended as i always needs o be adjus ed o
local condi ions.
CONCLUSION
e sys ema ic su ey o Yu a - S oyno b ough o ligh asubs an ial body o in o ma ion,
allowing us o see he selemen as adynamic uni sp eading a ound i s whole su ace and
no only h ough he conside ably limi ed keyholes p oduced by he exca a ions. Especially
aluable we e he compa isons o he ma e ial de ec ed on he su ace and he inds om
he exca a ions, as hey con i med he high deg ee o he si e’suni o mi y and helped us o
unde s and i s cha ac e .
e homogenous dis ibu ion o a chi ec u al ce amics and poe y implies ha a leas he
examined pa o he si e was buil up and used in an in eg a ed way. e houses we e buil
in opus c a icium, wi h saddle oo s co e ed in he egula-imb ex sys em using Laconian iles.
e su ey enclosed wo wo kshops si ua ed in he eas e n and no h - eas e n pa o i s
nucleus, poin ing o he me allu gical ac i i ies and glass p oduc ion aking place di ec ly
a he si e, mos likely in he o m o small wo kshops in eg a ed in o he common houses.
e ch onology and cha ac e o he inds poin o aslow decay o he selemen du ing he
La e An iqui y and i s successi e abandonmen la e on, e ealing only acciden al inds du ing
he Medie al pe iod, possibly due o acommunica ion c ossing nea by i s o me e i o y.
F om he me hodological poin o iew, he s udy showed ha o al pick - ups applied on
si es wi h ahigh deg ee o dis u bed su ace bea a high po en ial o disclose aconside able
amoun o in o ma ion, allowing o unc ional analyses. Howe e , amo e p ecise eco ding,
eckoning he obbe s’ enches and espec i e piles o ma e ials as in e connec ed uni s,
could e eal insigh s in o he unc ionali ies o he dis u bed ooms, no allowed by he e-
co ding conside ing he sec o s o 10×10 me es as he smalles uni s, used in he p esen s udy.

68 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like o hank ou colleagues om he Slo ak Uni e si y o Technology, Tibo
Liesko ský, Alexand a Rášo á and Ond ej T han, o helping us se up he su ey g id. Ou
deepes acknowledgemen s belong o he s uden s who su eyed he sec o s and despi e e y
un a ou able wea he condi ions such as a ozen su ace in he mo ning emained in high
spi i s. In alphabe ical o de , hey a e Cla issa Hauben hal, Jakub Ha lík, Hana Ha líko á
and Adéla Minaříko á.
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Tušlo á, P.2022: e Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec . PoÄe y S udies. SH Monog aphs 3. P aha.
Weisso á, B. 2022: Shedding Ligh on A chi ec u e o Roman Ru al Selemen s in  ace. Ce amic and
S one Building Ma e ials om Yu a - S oyno. In: P.Tušlo á– B. Weisso á– S. Baka dzhie (eds.): e
Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec . S udies on he Roman Ru al SeÄlemen in  ace. SH Monog aphs 2.
P aha, 70–89.
Weisso á, B.– Hauben hal, C.– Doležálko á, V. 2022: e Milling Equipmen . In: P.Tušlo á– B. Weiss-
o á– S. Baka dzhie (eds.): e Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec . S udies on he Roman Ru al SeÄlemen
in  ace. SH Monog aphs 2. P aha, 90–105.
Ba bo a Weisso á
Ruh - Uni e si ä Bochum
Ins i u ü A chäologische WissenschaÞen
Am Be gbaumuseum 31
D-44791 Bochum
ba bo a.weisso a@ ub.de
S e an Baka dzhie
Regional His o ical Museum o Yambol
Byalo mo e 2, BG-8600, Yambol
&
Uni e si y o Lib a y S udies
and In o ma ion Technologies
Tsa ig adsko Shose Bl d. 119, BG-1784, So ia
s _baka jie @ab .bg
Pe a Tušlo á
Cha les Uni e si y in P ague
Ins i u e o Classical A chaeology
Nám. Jana Palacha 2
CZ-11638 P ague
pe a. uslo a@ .cuni.cz
70 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Shedding Ligh on A chi ec u e o Roman Ru al Se lemen s
in Th ace. Ce amic and S one Building Ma e ials om
Yu a-S oyno
Ba bo a Weisso á
ABSTRACT
e assemblage discussed in his a icle ep esen s ahe e ogenous g oup o a chi ec u al ce amic and s one
building ma e ials ound a he Roman u al selemen o Yu a - S oyno. All he inds bu one we e de ec ed
du ing he Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec . e one ex a ind, ama ble capi al, was disco e ed p io
o he join p ojec and b ough o he Regional His o ical Museum o Yambol as an acciden al ind.
e a chi ec u al ce amics include oo iles, b icks, d ainage pipes, and aspace . e a chi ec u al s ones
encompass h ee di e en capi als/bases, acylind ical s one– possibly acolumn– and h ee agmen s o
s one iles possibly used as acing o walls.
Mos o he examined ma e ials a e no ch onologically sensi i e and hei analyses a e ocused on mo -
phological ea u es, possible unc ions and econs uc ions. Excep ions ep esen wo o he capi als; he
one men ioned abo e, iden i ied as aRoman - Do ic capi al Type 1 wi h lu ed shaÞ, possibly da ed as ea ly
as o he 2nd hal o he 1s cen u y AD; and he o he one, ound du ing he su ace su ey, which was de e -
mined as a‘simpli ied e sion o he Roman - Do ic Type 1’, da ed om he 2nd o 1s hal o he 3 d cen u y AD.
KEYWORDS
 ace; Roman u al selemen ; a chi ec u al ce amics; a chi ec u al s ones; capi al; base; animal imp in s.
INTRODUCTION
Based on aca e ul examina ion o all he ce amic and s one building ma e ials, he p esen
s udy o e s an ou line o a chi ec u al o ms appea ing in Yu a - S oyno. e as majo i y
o he collec ion o igina es om he Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec (SAP) conduc ed in
coope a ion wi h he Regional His o ical Museum o Yambol (RIM) and he Ins i u e o Classi-
cal A chaeology o he Cha les Uni e si y in P ague. e exca a ion was ca ied ou be ween
2014–2016 (Baka dzhie – Koza e 2015, 2016, 2017; Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie
2014, 16–24; Tušlo á e al. 2015, 243–261; Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2017, 99–108;
Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2018, 191–199) and he collec ion was u he en iched
wi h inds loca ed du ing he sys ema ic su ace su ey in 2016 (Tušlo á– Weisso á– Bak-
a dzhie 2017, 108–110). e mos spec acula o he p esen ed inds, acolumn head wi h
a lu ed necking, was b ough o he RIM by locals al eady p io o he SAP.
Sa age loo ing o he selemen caused displacemen s o mos o he s udied ma e ials,
esul ing ei he in a e e se s a ig aphy, o simply in piles o s ones and a chi ec u al ce-
amics placed igh nex o he illegal digs. As a esul , he con ex s a e poin ed ou only when
ele an / hey can be speci ied. When no s a ed o he wise, he inds come om uns a i ied
con ex s o laye s dis up ed by loo e s. While all he su ey inds belong o his g oup, in case
o exca a ions his conce ns mainly he RT soil [SU001]. Despi e his ob ious de iciency o
he ma e ial, he p esen ed collec ion s ill allows o ade ini ion o a chi ec u al ypes ep-
71SHEDDING LIGHT ON ARCHITECTURE OF ROMAN RURAL SETTLEMENTS IN THRACE
esen ed wi hin Yu a - S oyno, and, b oadly conside ed, o an ou line o a chi ec u al ypes
ep esen ed wi hin Roman u al selemen s si ua ed in Sou h - Eas e n  ace.
CERAMIC BUILDING MATERIAL
e g oup o a chi ec u al ce amics includes oo iles, b icks, d ainage pipes and one soli a y
space . All he a chi ec u al ce amics ound du ing he a chaeological wo ks we e indi idually
examined and he ollowing ex desc ibes he cha ac e is ic inds as well as he ou lie s. e
inds om he e i o y o he exca a ed house and om he su ey all a ound he selemen
do no ea u e any aceable di e ences in ypes, sizes o cumula ions.
ROOF TILES (TEGULAE AND IMBRICES)
All he s udied iles a e agmen a y; some o hem we e des oyed al eady du ing an iqui y,
some la e in he ame o he loo ing ac i i ies, as wi nessed by conside ably ecen b eaks.
e iden i ied oo iles, he einaÞe egulae, a e o he Laconian ype, which is cha ac e ised by
aconca e body wi hou ob ious langes o ims (Ginou ès 1992, 182–187, pl. 82). e wid h o
he iles a ies be ween 406 and 420 mm, he hickness be ween 22 and 32 mm. e heigh o he
conca e body spans be ween 70 and 80 mm. e longes p ese ed agmen eaches 593 mm,
bu none o he egulae e ealed ully ap ese ed leng h. Since he egulae we e no s anda dized
and each egion p oduced i s own ypes (Adam 2001, 213),1 he econs uc ed leng h has o be
based on local pa allels.2 In he e i o y o Bulga ia, mos o he published Laconian egulae
ound we e only agmen a y.3 An excep ion a e egulae iden i ied in he con ex o he illa
us ica a P eslo o, as hey e ealed comple e measu emen s o 690×390×25 mm (Sul o 1964,
57). As he wid h o he egulae om P eslo o (390 mm) is sligh ly smalle han he a e age
wid h o he egulae ound in Yu a - S oyno (be ween 406 and 420 mm), hei leng h a he
ep esen s he minimum possible dimensions. I ollows ha he egulae used in Yu a - S oyno
should ha e eached abou 700 mm in leng h in he case ha hey had simila p opo ions.
e su aces a e in gene al e en and smoo hed. Only se e al agmen s show ma kings o
inge g oo es on he con ex sides, each a ying be ween 12 and 14 mm in a e age wid h. e
de ec ed shapes o inge g oo es a e depic ed in Fig. 1.4 e con ex sides o se e al egulae
p ese ed aces o mo a . One o he egulae e ealed emains o mo a wi h imp in s o
wooden beams, wi nessing i s aachmen o he wooden oo cons uc ion.
e join s be ween he egulae we e co e ed wi h semi - cylind ical oo ing iles called
imb ices in o de o c ea e awa e p oo oo ing sys em. Iden i ied imb ices show a ying
shapes and measu emen s when conside ing hei heigh s and wid hs. e ou e su aces
a e deco a ed wi h shallow pa allel g oo es wi h an a e age wid h o abou 12–13 mm. e
g oo es un o e he whole leng h o he imb ices, co e ing hei su aces. e inne su aces
1As example, Adam (2001, 213) lis s highly di e ing measu emen s o egulae eco ded in Os ia
(480×720 mm, 450×600 mm, 410×570 mm, 405×530 mm), Rome (490×660 mm, 390×460 mm) and
Pompeii (690×475 mm, 525×660 mm, 475×640 mm, 500×590 mm, 480×590 mm).
2 Compa e wi h inds om Roman B i ain whe e egulae only excep ionally o e each 500 mm in
leng h (B od ibb 1987, 12).
3 As, o ins ance, a he La e An ique o ess a he hill Hisa lik in Kyus endil (Ruse a - Slokoska
2016, 94), o in Oescus (I ano 2006, 151).
4Fo compa a i e examples o g oo es de ec ed on b icks and iles along he Lowe Danube, see
I ano 2006, 156, igs. 46 and 47, 166, igs. 57 and 58.
78 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Assemblage om Yu a - S oyno e ealed one space bobbin (Fig. 4:26) ound in a ill
[SU021] inside Room B. e space is 75 mm long, i s ends widen o 52 and 63 mm espec i ely,
he diame e o he hollow is 15 mm.
Space s belong o ela i ely common inds in he con ex o he Roman a chi ec u e
in  ace (I ano 1971, 40); o he e i o y o Bulga ia, simila space s a e known om
he con ex o he Roman house in Nicopolis ad Is um (Poul e 1995, 190), ba hs in No ae
(Bie nacki 2003, 10, ig. 3) and Oescus (I ano 1971, 38–41), om he illa us ica nea P iso o
(Sul o 1964, 57, ig. 12) o om Kabyle.5
Fig. 4: A e acoa space bobbin. D awings by V. Doležálko á.
ARCHITECTURAL STONES
e a chi ec u al s ones discussed in he ex include wo capi als and one wo ked s one– pos-
sibly abase o acapi al, one cylind ical s one, h ee s one pla es and ou massi e ec angula
s ones (nos.27–33). e spa ial dis ibu ion o he a chi ec u al s ones is depic ed on he Map 1.
CAPITALS/BASES
e mos ep esen a i e, as well as in he con ex o he de ec ed a chi ec u e ep esen ing
an ou lie , is he capi al no. 27 made o ma ble (Fig. 5:27; Pl. 1/3:27). I was b ough as a an-
dom ind o he museum by locals and besides i s app oxima e alloca ion o Yu a - S oyno,
we lack any o he in o ma ion abou i s inding con ex . e whole capi al is 160 mm high;
i has asqua e lowe abacus o 50 mm heigh and 450 mm aside, echinus o 45 mm heigh ,
wo annuli and a lu ed necking. e necking ea u es 20 channels, he endings o a ises a e
abou 5 mm wide. e lowe pa o he necking e ealed an o al dowel hole o 60–65 mm in
diame e . e dowel hole is placed symme ically in he middle o he lowe pa o he cap-
i al. e uppe pa o he abacus ea u es a ec angula dowel hole o 50×30×20 mm, placed
asymme ically in one o he co ne s o he abacus, only 60 mm a o he nea es edges. On
op o ha , he abacus has a ounded imp in on i s op, leÞ symme ically in i s middle by
acolumn o 390 mm in diame e .
5 Pe sonal obse a ion o unpublished ma e ials deposi ed in he a chi e o he a chaeological base
in Kabile.

79SHEDDING LIGHT ON ARCHITECTURE OF ROMAN RURAL SETTLEMENTS IN THRACE
e symme ically placed dowel hole on he lowe pa o he necking poin s o i s u ili-
za ion as acapi al. e asymme ic dowel hole and he imp in o he column on he op o
he capi al a e a he puzzling and poin o i s seconda y o e ia y u iliza ion. e imp in
sugges s he capi al was used as abase suppo ing acolumn. e ec angula dowel hole
asymme ically placed in i s co ne , howe e , does no compo his way o u ilisa ion. I is
likely he s one had adi e en unc ion and e en ashape in he i s place, and i was la e
wo ked o he capi al and a some poin eused as abase.
e su ace o he capi al is e en and smoo hed, wi h no isible aces o picking. e
channels on he necking as well as he a ises a e egula ly placed and well wo ked. e ine
execu ion o he capi al is an ou lie wi hin he a chi ec u e componen s hi he o de ec ed
in Yu a - S oyno.
Based on he ypology ou lined by Dimi o , i is aRoman - Do ic capi al Type 1 wi h lu ed
shaÞ (Dimi o 2004, 221–222), one o he ea lies de ails connec ed wi h Roman a chi ec u e
and appea ing in  ace by he end o he 1s and beginning o he 2nd c. AD. I s u iliza ion is
ypical in he con ex o domes ic a chi ec u e. Adi ec pa allel was ound a he illa si ua ed
ame e 1.5 km sou h o Yu a-S oyno, in he e i o y o S . Iliya (Ag e – Diche – Ch is o
2022),6 a he illa us ica nea Cha alka (Dimi o 2004, 222, ig. 42) o in he ea ly phases
o he Roman o um in he ci y o Philippopolis (Dzhambo – Ma ee 1978, ig. 8; 1979, 52,
6 Pho o o he capi al was p esen ed a he yea ly a chaeological epo s (o che i) on Ma ch 3 d 2022
by D. Ag e.
Map 1: Spa ial dis ibu ion o a chi ec u al s ones.
80 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
ig. 10), he lae wo da ed o he 2nd hal o he 1s cen u y AD. Diocle ianopolis e ealed he
la es examples, da ed o he 2nd–3 d cen u y AD and ound as spolia in he La e An ique basilica
(Tsonche , 1956, 144–145, nos. 2–7). Mo e pa allels can be seen in Moesia In e io , including
illa Mada a (D emsizo a 1984, 83–85, 113), mili a y camps si ua ed along he Danube Ri e
in Oescus, Du os o um and inland ci ies Ab i us and Ma cianopolis(Dimi o 2004, 221–222).
e o he wo pieces o a chi ec u e nos. 28 and 29 we e ound du ing he sys ema ic su -
ace su ey in he no h - eas e n pa o he examined e i o y, in he sou h - eas e n sec o o
he squa e D13, lying nex o each o he wi hin he obbe s’ soil (Weisso á – Tušlo á– Bak-
a dzhie 2022, map 5). No. 28 migh be clea ly iden i ied as acapi al, bu he agmen a ion
o no. 29 does no allow o aclea iden i ica ion o i s unc ion, lea ing us wi h wo possible
in e p e a ions, ei he as acapi al, o as abase.
e capi al no. 28 (Fig. 5:28; Pl. 1/3:28) is made o mic i e (Hauben hal 2022, no.
2, ab.1:2). I is 137 mm high; he squa e lowe abacus measu es 58 mm, wi h ca. 280 mm
aside,
7
he echinus is 38 mm high, wi h no annuli be ween he echinus and he necking. e
necking is 40 mm high and smoo h, i.e. wi hou any channels. e diame e o he necking
is 230 mm. No dowel holes we e de ec ed. e echinus is la gely des oyed bu he abacus
p ese ed i s o iginal su ace. I is wo ked by picking and does no ea u e any aces o
smoo hing. e une en su ace migh ha e been co e ed wi h alaye o s ucco in o de o
upliÞ he appea ance o he capi al. Howe e , he ough wo king could be also asc ibed o
he common end appea ing du ing he 2nd and he 3 d cen u y AD in Moesia and  ace
desc ibed by Pe o a (1990, 10) as degene a ion o he capi als. e end includes e y
schema ic and un inished wo king as well as subsequen educ ion o he numbe s o an-
nuli, scaled down o asligh ly conca e line di iding echinus and abacus, as i also appea s
in case o he capi al no. 28.
Pe o a’s ypology (1999, 8–16) o Roman - Do ic capi als om Moesia and  ace allows
classi ica ion o no. 28 as Type 1– aRoman - Do ic capi al wi h smoo h echinus. Based on
Dimi o ’s ypology (2004, 221), i is a‘simpli ied e sion o he Roman - Do ic Type 1’, also
called he classic Do ic capi al. is ype o capi al is used in he domes ic a chi ec u e. Whils
ea u ing analogical shapes, he a ailable pa allels a e conside ably la ge in hei sizes, es-
pecially in he wid h. Fo ins ance, he capi al ound in Philippopolis (Bo usha o a 1960, 88),
al hough a i s sigh iden ical in shape, has he abacus o 400 mm aside, i.e. 120 mm (30%)
mo e han in he case o he capi al om Yu a - S oyno. Asimila piece o a chi ec u e was
ound in Kabile, si ua ed some 34 km no h o Yu a - S oyno and, albei exhibi ed as abase
in he exhibi o he Museum o A chaeological Pa k o  acian and Ancien Ci y o Kabile,
i ep esen s asui able pa allel o no. 28. e heigh o he agmen is 200 mm, i s abacus
measu es 360 mm aside and he diame e o he ‘necking’ is 310 mm. E en hough he di -
e ence is no as la ge as in case o he capi al om Philippopolis, i is s ill qui e p onounced.
Conside ing he small size, he lack o dowel holes and he inelegan execu ion, he unc ion
o he capi al as one o he main ca ying and ep esen a i e elemen s is unlikely. I was mos
likely ei he pa ially buil in awall o used as asmall capi al in some kind o abalus ade
(Pe o a 1990, 10). Lea ing aside he size o he capi al no. 28, pa allels o i s o m om he
Lowe Danube a e da ed o he An onine and Se e an dynas ies, i.e. o he 2nd cen u y and he
1s hal o he 3 d cen u y AD (Dimi o 2004, 131).
e hi d discussed piece o a chi ec u e no. 29 (Fig. 5:29; Pl. 1/3:29) ound in Yu a-
-S oyno is ep esen ed by a ela i ely small agmen , which makes i s iden i ica ion a he
7 e measu emen is econs uc ed based on he p ese ed agmen o he abacus (135×150 mm)
and emaining pa s o he capi al (by Vě a Doležálko á).
81SHEDDING LIGHT ON ARCHITECTURE OF ROMAN RURAL SETTLEMENTS IN THRACE
di icul . e wo ked piece o ma ble (Hauben hal 2022, no. 1, ab.1:1) migh be in e p e ed as
apa o an echinus, al hough some kind o base is no excluded. e ‘uppe pa ’ o he s one
has ap ese ed oughly wo ked su ace, which poin s o he ac ha he expec ed abacus
was no pa o he piece. e lowe pa is b oken o . e only measu emen is he p ese ed
heigh and he maximum diame e , which is possible o econs uc . e heigh equals 145 mm
and he diame e is 360 mm, he lowe pa na ows down o abou 205–210 mm. Al hough i
is b oken, i seems logical he necking was no much smalle in diame e han he p ese ed
piece; expec edly na owing down o abou 200 mm. Despi e lacking di ec pa allels, he size
o he capi al is also smalle han usual p opo ions and migh ul il simila unc ions as he
capi al no. 28 discussed abo e.
e pe og aphic analysis con i med local o igin o he s ones nos. 28 and 29, possible o
be asc ibed o he Kamene s Qua y si ua ed abou 8 km no h - eas o Yu a - S oyo o o any
o he qua y exploi ing he local massi e o T iassic ma bles and (me amo phic) limes ones
in he icini y o he si e (Hauben hal 2022, map 1).
CYLINDRICAL STONE
e cylind ical piece o ma ble no. 30 (Hauben hal 2022, no. 3, ab.1:3) is 370 mm in diame e ,
and i is 400 mm high (Pl. 1/3:30). As i is ela i ely sho , he piece ep esen s asingle d um
o column o some kind o suppo ing elemen wi hin he a chi ec u e. e su ace is only
e y oughly wo ked which sugges s i was ei he co e ed wi h s ucco, used as aba ely isible
sel - s anding plin h, o i is an un inished p oduc , ap e ab ica e coming di ec ly om he
qua y. e column does no ea u e handling bosses, bu aces o possible g ips in he mids
o he d um. e lack o dowel holes migh be asc ibed o i s un inished s a e, o o a ac i
was mean o be pa ially buil in he wall8 o sel - s anding and no secu ely connec ed wi h
o he s ones as expec ed in case o ad um.
STONE PLATES
e assemblage e ealed h ee agmen s o well wo ked s one pla es, mos likely used as
s one cladding o an embellishmen o he in e io (Tab.5:31–33; Pl. 1/3:31–33). ei o iginal
measu emen s a e no p ese ed; he la ges piece has me e 102×68 mm (no. 32). e only
in o ma i e size is hei hickness, a ying be ween 7 (no. 31), 15 (no. 32) and 21 (no. 33) mm.
Especially he no. 31 is o be poin ed ou , as i is e y well wo ked and due o i s small hickness
alile anslucen . Gi en i s anslucency, i could be also connec ed wi h an illumina ing
unc ion. No. 33 is hick enough o be used as a loo ing. e ma e ials we e analysed by he
naked eye only and can be gene ally de e mined as ma blelike s ones.
8 Simila as in he case o he syeni e columns iden i ied in he esiden ial complex in Philippopolis
(Kesyako a 1998, 164; 1999, 89).
No. Yu a-S oyno # SU Sec . Heigh o g. Abacus h. / side l. Echinus h. / max d. Necking h. / d.
27 × × × 160 50 / 450 45 / 450 50 / 340
28 SY16_AS_002 D13 SE 137 58 / 280 38 / 280 40 / 230
29 SY16_AS_001 D13 SE 145 × 145 / 360 ×
Tab.4: Capi als/bases. All measu emen s in millime es; h. = heigh , l. = leng h, d. = diame e .
82 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Fig. 5: Capi als/base; no. 27: Roman-Do ic capi al Type 1; no. 28: simpli ied e sion o Roman-Do ic
capi al Type 1; no. 29: capi al o base. D awings by V. Doležálko á.
83SHEDDING LIGHT ON ARCHITECTURE OF ROMAN RURAL SETTLEMENTS IN THRACE
MASSIVE RECTANGULAR STONES
e a chi ec u al elemen s de ec ed on he selemen also include ou massi e ec angula
s ones wi h measu emen s spanning om 60×45×32 cm o 90×70×33 cm. ese we e ound on
he su ace bo h in he no he n and sou he n limi s o he in es iga ed a ea. e s ones wi h
ough d essing a e une enly wo ked by picking; none o hem e ealed aces o handling
bosses, g ips o lewis holes, common in he case o la ge s ones o enable hei mo ing (Adam
2001, 48–50). e mic i ic ma ix, mic oscopically analysed o one o he blocks, poin s o
hei local o igin (Hauben hal 2022, no. 5, ab.1:5).
Al hough he s ones a e appa en ly missing hei o iginal con ex s, hei size, lack o
splendou and especially g ea weigh p omp s one o assume hey we e no mo ed a away
om hei o iginal inding places. ey seem o be inhe en pa s o he common a chi ec-
u e, mos likely used in ounda ions o o ou lining he co ne s o he buildings in o de o
inc ease hei s abili y.
DISCUSSION
e de ec ed ce amic and s one building ma e ials allowed us o unde s and he basic ech-
niques and o ms used o he cons uc ion o he houses in Yu a - S oyno. e ma e ials
e ealed om he exca a ion (Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2022), as well as om
he su ace su ey (Weisso á– Tušlo á –Baka dzhie 2022), con i med he u iliza ion o
opus c a icium as he main building echnique, i.e. he s one ounda ions wi h uppe walls
made o hal - imbe ed adobe cons uc ion. is echnique lea es us wi h some ques ions
conce ning he u iliza ion o he de ec ed b icks, as hey a e no an inhe en pa o he walls
and mus ha e been connec ed wi h o he unc ions. e b icks, and especially he pedales,
can be in e p e ed as pa s o loo ing. Howe e , some o hem e ealed clea aces o mo a
on hei uppe su aces, which poin s o hei u ilisa ion in some cons uc ion, possibly as
bases o caps o pilae in hypocaus um. e exis ence o he space bobbin and he sesquipe-
dalis compo s his heo y. is implies ha some o he houses we e equipped wi h a loo
and wall hea ing o , e en, ha he selemen had aba h. e hypo hesis is also suppo ed
by agmen s o windowpanes iden i ied a he selemen (Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á
2022, ab.6:22–27). Al hough he amoun o he inds sugges ing he exis ence o ahea ed loo
is a he minimal, he space bobbin clea ly poin s o an exis ence o he wall hea ing, as i
had no o he unc ions wi hin he Roman a chi ec u e. e ma blelike pla es migh also be
connec ed wi h he hea ed ooms, se ing as loo ing and coa ings o he walls. e dispe sion
and sca ci y o he inds connec ed wi h he hypocaus um can be explained by acollapse o
he hea ing sys em / ba h al eady du ing an iqui y and by he u iliza ion o he deb is when
le elling he su ace in he a ea o he house o e en o some pa s o he selemen . Such
No. Yu a-S oyno # SU T ench Sec . w. × l. h.
31 SF15_167 SU001 95E_100N × 46×62 7
32 SY14_AS_001 SU001 × × 102×68 15
33 SY15_AS_001 SU059 100E_105N NE 91×88 21
Tab.5: Ma blelike s one pla es. All measu emen s in millime es; w. = wid h, l. = leng h, h. = hick-
ness.

84 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
ale elling laye was con i med du ing he exca a ions o he house cou ya d (Tušlo á–
Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2018, 197; Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2022). In o de o
comple ely econs uc he hypocaus um, he de ec ed assemblage is missing bessales, b icks
usually used o build he pilae. e absence o bessales migh be simply explained by he
de iciency o he collec ed ma e ial, bu i is highly imp obable, since he sys ema ic su ey
co e ed mos o he si e, and i s ocus was he iden i ica ion o di e en ypes o a chi ec u al
ce amics. Mo e likely, he pilae we e buil om al e na i e ma e ials. Ou o he occu ences
lis ed by B od ibb (1987, 93–95), he u ilisa ion o wo imb ices joined oge he and illed wi h
mo a , such as in Rockbou ne, migh be conside ed. e la ge semi - o al imb ices (Type 1c)
would se e he pu pose. Fu he , sea ching in he egional pa allels, illa A mi a (Kabak-
chie a 2009), Hisa and Oescus (I ano 1971, 29–31) e ealed ahypocaus suppo sys em
buil om pipes. is iden i ica ion would explain he pa icula occu ence o he pipe no.
25, which, wi h i s s aigh op, uni o m hickness and empe ed clay, would o e as able
suppo o he hea ed loo . Such suppo s had small openings which canno be p o ed o
disp o ed in he case o he pipe no. 25, as he agmen is oo small.9Pilae made om pipes
o imb ices we e less s able han he ones made om b icks, which suppo s he heo y o he
ea ly collapse o he hea ing.
Some o he b icks in he assemblage we e en i ely bu n , almos i i ied. is migh ha e
happened ei he du ing he ini ial i ing, des uc ion, o u iliza ion in high empe a u es. In
he case o he lae , i is possible he b icks we e pa s o hea hs o kilns.
Among puzzling inds a e he capi als/bases nos. 28 and 29 and he shaÞ o he column no.
30 de ec ed on he si e du ing he SAP. Al hough Dimi o (2012, 128) connec s he u ilisa ion
o he ‘simpli ied e sion o he Roman - Do ic Type 1’ (no. 28) wi h Roman sele s who use
i o simple and much easie deco a ion o he main buildings in he legiona y camps and
mili a y si es, he pieces nos. 28 and 29 can be a he in e p e ed as pa s o he common
dwellings such as he exca a ed house (c. . Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2022). e
eason is hei small size, oughly wo ked su ace and hei singula i y. Howe e , wi hou
u he exca a ions e ealing mo e ypes o s uc u es and a chi ec u al componen s a he
si e, he in e p e a ion emains ame e heo y, lacking mo e solid e idence. Al hough only
he capi al no. 28 can be based on i s s ylis ic analysis assigned o he ‘simpli ied e sion o
he Roman - Do ic Type 1’, and as such da ed o he 2nd cen u y and he 1s hal o he 3 d cen u y
AD, Isugges da ing he emaining capi al/base no. 29 o he ime span be ween he 2nd and
3 d cen u y AD based on i s ough execu ion, compo ing wi h he end o he degene a ion
o capi als in his pe iod (Pe o a 1990, 10).
A eal ou lie in he whole g oup o he discussed inds ep esen s he Roman Do ic capi al
Type 1 (no. 27) wi h a lu ed shaÞ wi h pa allels om he illa us ica in Cha alka da ed o he
2nd hal o he 1s cen u y AD. Conside ing i s ine execu ion, especially when compa ed wi h
he o he wo capi als/bases nos. 28 and 29, and i s ea ly da ing, he di ec connec ion wi h he
si e is a he imp obable. Since i was b ough by he locals o he museum, he alse asc ip ion
o Yu a - S oyno is possible. Adi ec pa allel o he capi al had been ecen ly (in 2021) ound
a he illa a S . Iliya loca ed 1.5 km sou h om Yu a-S oyno. We may consequen ly p esume
i is a he ela ed o ha selemen han o Yu a-S oyno (Ag e– Diche – H is o 2015,
208–211; Diche 2018, 724–726; Ag e – Diche – H is o 2022). Acco ding o he in es iga o s,
he illa has wo da ed cons uc ion phases: 13/12 BC– AD 12 and he end o he 1s and he 2nd c.
9e e is, howe e , one ce amic agmen wi h acu ec angula hole which was p ocessed oge he
wi h he poe y, and which is in e p e ed as a enes a ed window (Tušlo á 2022). In heo y, his
piece could be iden i ied as well as pa o he e acoa pipe used o hypocaus um.
85SHEDDING LIGHT ON ARCHITECTURE OF ROMAN RURAL SETTLEMENTS IN THRACE
AD, and– in he case ha we ollow his scena io– he capi al could be pa o i s 2nd cons uc-
ion phase. Las bu no leas , he capi al migh be also connec ed wi h abu ial mound. An
analogy o his in e p e a ion ep esen he indings om he K al Meza umulus, si ua ed
some 3.5 km no h - wes o S oyno illage. Apa om h ee g a e cons uc ions, he mound
e ealed abase, acolumn, and aDo ic capi al, in e p e ed as emains o acommemo a i e
monumen (Ag e– Ch is o 2016, 303; Ag e– Diche – Ag e 2019, 687).
In any case, he capi al could ha e been b ough om asi e in he icini y and used as
aspolium in Yu a - S oyno al eady du ing an iqui y. e combina ion o he symme ical
dowel hole in he shaÞ, he asymme ical ec angula dowel hole, as well as he imp in o
acolumn on he op o he abacus poin o he seconda y o e en e ia y u ilisa ion o he
capi al, opening possibili ies o many o he heo ies connec ed wi h i s u ilisa ion.
Pa icula inds, occu ing independen o he ou lined ypologies o he a chi ec u al
ce amics, a e b icks and iles wi h imp essions and imp in s. ey do no only ep esen
en e aining disco e ies and enjoy g ea popula i y among exca a o s, bu hey also p o ide
knowledge abou animals and hei ac i i ies a ound human habi a ions and p oduc ion cen-
es (Ba - Oz– Teppe 2010, 244). Based on he animal imp essions, se e al domes ic as well
as wild animals could be iden i ied a he p oduc ion si e, including dogs and/o oxes (nos.8,
9, 10, 11 and 12), sheep o goa s (nos. 13, 14, 15 and possibly 17 and 18), and pigs (no.16 and
possibly nos. 17 and 18). e p esence o hese animals a Yu a - S oyno, excep he ox, was
aes ed by he analysis o animal bones (Ný l o á Fišáko á 2022, ab.3). Howe e , we do
no ha e any basis on which we could p o e he p oduc ion o a chi ec u al ce amics a he
selemen . An appealing ind is ep esen ed by se en imp in s o an a i icial s amp, imi a ing
ee o some wa e owl (no. 21). e e does no seem o be any meaning ul eason o using
his s amp in en ionally ega ding he manu ac u e pu poses. I s c ea ion migh be a he
in e p e ed as aconsequence o agame and playing a he place o he ce amic p oduc ion,
as he human (leisu e) p esence a ound he wo kshop is also well aes ed by o he imp in s–
he ee (no. 19) and he hand (no. 20).
CONCLUSION
No wi hs anding he la ge amoun s o analysed ma e ials o a chi ec u al ce amics and
s ones de ec ed a Yu a - S oyno, hey appea ed o be conside ably uni o m. Consequen ly,
he s udy o e s a ela i ely limi ed numbe o a chi ec u al ypes, possible o be de ined a
he selemen .
e ypical ype o a chi ec u e de ec ed du ing he exca a ion and based on he su ey
also all a ound he selemen a e dwellings buil in he echnique o opus c a icium, i.e. using
unwo ked s ones o he ounda ions and hal - imbe ed adobe cons uc ions o he walls. is
ype o a chi ec u e is con i med by conside ably small amoun s o b icks de ec ed be ween
he a chi ec u al ce amics. Cons uc ions o gable oo s we e made o wooden beams and
co e ed wi h Laconian iles, using he egula and imb ex sys em. e houses we e equipped
wi h d ainage sys ems, as wi nessed by he pipes ound in si u in Room D o he exca a ed
house as well as by he dispe sion o pipe agmen s wi hin he illici heaps all a ound he
su ace o he si e. Some o he examined b icks we e en i ely bu n , ei he du ing ini ial
i ing, des uc ion, o due o hei u iliza ion in high empe a u es. e lae poin s o he
anyway ine i able exis ence o hea hs o kilns on he si e.
Besides he ela i ely uni o m a chi ec u e, he assemblage e ealed an appealing g oup
o inds which poin o he exis ence o ahea ed loo and wall si ua ed somewhe e wi hin
86 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
he selemen , wi h he p ecise loca ion emaining unknown. As he inds a e andomly
dis ibu ed all a ound he si e, i is p obable he building was des oyed al eady du ing an-
iqui y and he deb is became pa o he le elling laye . e e idence includes pedales, one
sesquipedalis, one space bobbin, h ee agmen s o ma blelike pla es ep esen ing loo ing
and wall coa ings as well as one pipe sui able o he hypocaus column. Despi e i s sca ci y,
he inds ep esen acon incing collec ion poin ing o aba hing acili y in Yu a - S oyno.
e su ey in he no h and no h-eas pa o he si e e ealed h ee wo ked s ones ep-
esen ed by wo capi als o possibly one capi al and one base (nos. 28–29), and one cylind ical
s one, easibly some kind o acolumn o aplin h (no. 30). Especially conspicuous is he ough
wo king o all he pieces, poin ing o he possibili y hey we e co e ed wi h alaye o s uc-
co in o de o upliÞ hei ou wa d appea ance. As hey ha e only e y lile ep esen a i e
cha ac e , hey we e mos likely pa s o he common dwellings, used o ins ance in some
kind o abalus ade. Due o he bad p ese a ion o he capi al/base no. 29, only he capi al
no. 28 is possible o be de e mined o he Dimi o ’s ype o he ‘simpli ied e sion o he
Roman - Do ic Type 1’.
e las piece o a chi ec u e assigned o he si e is he ma ble capi al no. 27 de e mined
as Dimi o ’sRoman - Do ic Type 1, an ou lie in he whole collec ion due o i s ine execu ion.
e su ace o he capi al is e en and smoo hed, wi h no isible aces o picking. e channels
on he necking as well as he a ises a e egula ly placed and well wo ked. e capi al e ealed
wo dowel holes and one imp in o acolumn, poin ing o i s u iliza ion in di e se con ex s
and ul illing di e en unc ions. e a ibu ion o he capi al o he si e o Yu a - S oyno
is based on he in o ma ion o locals who b ough he capi al o he museum. As we we e no
able o de ec any a chi ec u al piece o such a ine execu ion du ing ou ex ensi e wo ks
in Yu a - S oyno, he di ec connec ion wi h he si e seems a he imp obable. We ou lined
se e al possible scena ios explaining he appea ance o he capi al. I could be assigned o
a) he Roman illa si ua ed in he e i o y o S . Iliya, only 1.5 km sou h o Yu a - S oyno, o
b) o acommemo a i e monumen si ua ed in he icini y and en i ely des oyed by loo e s.
e u ilisa ion o he capi al wi hin he a chi ec u e o Yu a - S oyno is he ewi h no ou o
he ques ion, bu i so, i seems i was a he b ough o he selemen and used as aspolium.
As o he ch onology o he si e, he a chi ec u al ce amics do no allow o any p ecise
da a. e only sensi i e ma e ial a e he wo capi als no. 27 and no. 28. e Roman - Do ic Type 1
(no. 27) ep esen s one o he ea lies de ails connec ed wi h he Roman a chi ec u e and
based on di ec pa allels om  ace ( he illa a S . Iliya, illa us ica nea Cha alka and ea ly
phase o he Roman o um o Philippopolis), i da es om he 2nd hal o he 1s cen u y o he
2nd cen u y AD. e ‘simpli ied e sion o he Roman - Do ic Type 1’ (no. 28) is cha ac e is ic
o i s ough wo king possibly connec ed wi h he degene a ion o he capi als appea ing as
common end in  ace du ing he 2nd and 3 d cen u y AD. Based on he pa allels om he
e i o y o Lowe Danube, he capi al da es o he 2nd cen u y o he 1s hal o he 3 d cen u y
AD. Taking in o accoun he ough execu ion o he capi al no. 29, i can be app oxima ely
da ed o he 2nd o 3 d cen u y AD.
Conside ing he ac he ch onology o he o he da ed inds om Yu a - S oyno (see
s udies in his olume) spans be ween he 2nd and 4 h cen u y AD, wi h single inds da ed o
he 5 h–6 h cen u y AD, he ep esen a i e capi al o he Roman - Do ic Type 1 ei he belongs o
o us an unknown phase o he selemen o i was b ough o he si e om he icini y o
Yu a - S oyno and used as aspolium.
In o de o allow o abee unde s anding and in e p e a ion o he single inds, sim-
ila egional s udies o u al selemen s in  ace would o e abee s epping s one o
compa a i e analyses. Ihope o help wi h his s udy o a ouse mo e in e es in hese so a
87SHEDDING LIGHT ON ARCHITECTURE OF ROMAN RURAL SETTLEMENTS IN THRACE
a he neglec ed ypes o si es, opening new possibili ies o ou unde s anding o he Roman
a chi ec u e wi hin he  acian u al landscape.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Iwould like o exp ess my since e g a i ude o Jon Albe s (Ruh Uni e si y Bochum) o his
consul a ions abou puzzling a chi ec u al agmen s appea ing in he assemblage. Iam mos
g a e ul o Ma in Minařík (Cla e Bake ’sLab, Camb idge) o his eadiness o iden i y he
animal imp essions appea ing on he b icks and iles and o gi ing me a ee hand when
using his illus a ions. Las bu no leas , Iwould like o hank Vě a Doležálko á (Ins i u e o
A chaeological Conse a ion, Cen al Bohemia) and Cla issa Hauben hal (Ruh Uni e si y in
Bochum) o hei help wi h he d awings.
ABBREVIATIONS
AB = A chaeologia Bulga ica
AJA = Ame ican Jou nal o A chaeology
AOR = Археологически открития иразкопки
JRS = Jou nal o Roman S udies
SH = S udia He cynia
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Adam, J.-P.2001: Roman Building. Ma e ials and echniques. London.
Ag e– Ch is o 2016 =Агре, Д.– Христов, Х. 2016: Спасителни археологически проучвания на могила
Крал Мезар вземлището на с. Бояново, общ. Елхово. AOR през 2015 г., 301–303.
Ag e– Diche – H is o 2015 = Агре, Д.– Дичев, Д.– Христов, Х. 2015: Археологически разкопки на
селищен обект вм. Манастирчето– Св. Илия, край с. Стройно, община Елхово. AOR през 2014 г.,
208–211.
Ag e, D.– Diche , D.– Ag e, G. 2019: Roman Balsama ium Shaped as aMale Head in Feline - Skin Cap om
he Te i o y o Sou heas Bulga ia. AJA 123, 687–698.
Ag e – Diche – H is o 2021 = Агре, Д. – Дичев, Д. – Христов, Х. 2021: Трако-римски селищен обект
в м. Св. Илия в землището на с. Стройно, обш. Елхово. AOR през 2020 г., 875–880.
Baka dzhie 2007 = Бакарджиев, С. 2007: Сондажни археологически проучваня вм. ‘Юрта‘ при
с. Стройно, община Елхово, област Ямбол. AOR през 2006 г., 238–241.
Baka dzhie 2008 = Бакарджиев, С. 2007: Сондажни археологически проучваня вм. ‘Юрта‘ при
с. Стройно, община Елхово. AOR през 2006 г., 471–473.
Baka dzhie – Koza e 2015: Бакърджиев, С.– Козарев, М. 2015: Спасителни археологически проу-
чвания на антично Селище вм. Юрта, с. Стройно, Община Елхово. AOR през 2014 г., 570–572.
Baka dzhie – Koza e 2016 = Бакърджиев, С.– Козарев, М. 2016: Едовни археологически проучвания
на антично селище вм. Юрта, с. Стройно, общ. Елхово. AOR през 2015 г., 633–635.
Baka dzhie – Koza e 2017 = Бакърджиев, С.– Козарев, М. 2017: Редовни археологически проучвания
на антично селище вм. Юрта, с. Стройно, Общ. Елхово. AOR през 2016 г., 450–453.
94 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
ROTARY QUERNS
Ro a y que ns consis o wo ci cula s ones. e uppe s one, o ca illus, and he lowe s one,
o me a. e ca illus has acen al pe o a ion (eye) h ough which i is assembled wi h he
lowe s one by means o aspindle, some imes ixed wi h a ynd (Mo i z 1958, 103–121; An-
de son– Sca ow– Cambeses 2014, 111; Haukene al. 2015, 35).
e o a y que ns / hand - mills appea in Eu ope du ing he 5
h
cen u y BC (Alonso
Ma ínez 1997, 15–19; Jacco ey e al. 2013, 407–408, ig. 2). Unlike mos o he a e ac s
ound du ing a chaeological exca a ions, he o a y que ns had no been subjec ed o igo ous
ypological classi ica ion un il he beginning o he 21s cen u y. Only wi h he es ablishmen
o he ‘G oupe Meule’5 in F ance in 2005, his gap s a ed o be slowly illed in, al hough he
geog aphical ocus o he eam a e he egions o F ance.
Based on acomp ehensi e s udy o nume ous assemblages om all o e Eu ope, Peacock
(2013a, 54–71) de e mined ou dis inc i e and geog aphically limi ed g oups o o a y que ns
appea ing du ing he La e I on Age. e g oups a e de ined by he shape o he uppe s one
and include Cylind ical, Hemisphe ical, Ibe ian and Conical ypes. e Conical ype should
be cha ac e is ic o he examined e i o y, as i is de e mined as he ep esen a i e o he
a ea o Eas e n Eu ope, including he Aegean a ea and he Black Sea egion. A his poin ,
i is necessa y o s ess one issue; none o he examples D. Peacock bases he geog aphic
di ision on come om he e i o y o Bulga ia. Howe e , we a he asc ibe he de iciency
o he lack o he published ma e ial, as demons a ed abo e, han o he lack o Conical
ca illi in Bulga ia.
e mo phology o Roman o a y que ns has hi he o no been analysed in asimila way.
D. Peacock (2013a, 72–76), howe e , no ed ha he appea ance o o a y que ns du ing he
Roman pe iod was in adi ec dependency on hei an eceden s, ollowing he egional di -
e ences eme ging du ing he La e I on Age. is implies he Conical ype should be ep e-
sen a i e o he examined e i o y also du ing he Roman pe iod. A he same ime, se e al
dis inc i e changes cha ac e is ic o he Roman p oduc ion appea h oughou all he e-
gional g oups. In pa icula , he que ns a e signi ican ly lae and la ge in diame e ,6 wi h
he ynd placed on he op o he ca illus. Wi h ega d o he changes ou lined o he Roman
pe iod, we use Peacock’sgene al g ouping o he shapes o ca illi, as his wo k ep esen s he
only comp ehensi e ypology including Eas e n Eu ope. Fo amo e de ailed subdi ision, we
u he apply he ypology de eloped by S aubi z (2007) who uses as adis inc i e cha ac-
e is ic he p o iling o he uppe su aces o ca illi. Al hough S aubi z’swo k is based solely
on inds om he La e Cel ic oppidum Heide änk in he Taunus hills (Wes e n Ge many),7
he esul s compo wi h classi iable ea u es in ou assemblage. e ypes in oduced by
5 ‘G oupe Meule’ p ojec ocuses on he es ablishmen o he me hodological app oaches (glossa y,
d awing s anda ds, e c.) when p ocessing g inding ools da ed o he b oad ime - span om he
Neoli hic pe iod o he Medie al pe iod. Fo o a y que ns in pa icula , see G oupe Meule 2014,
178–180.
6 In gene al, see Peacock (2013a). Pa icula numbe s a e in di ec dependency on he egional de el-
opmen . Fo ins ance, see as udy examining o a y que ns om F ance which clea ly demons a es
he g ow h o he diame e s be ween he end o he Gallic pe iod (La Tène D1) and he Medie al
pe iod ( he assemblage da es la es o he 7 h cen u y AD). e edge measu emen s o he o a y
que ns a e 300 and 500 mm in diame e (Jacco ey e al. 2011, 291–298).
7 e p esen ed que ns a e di ided using he same desc ip i e c i e ia, howe e , we do no use he
ypes A–D as in oduced by S aubi z, as hey we e de eloped and ully apply o Cel ic que ns o
a he cylind ical shapes.

95THE MILLING EQUIPMENT
S aubi z include ca illi wi hou a im (A), wi h asloping im (B), wi h a la im (C) and wi h
a la uppe su ace and no im (D).
In gene al, wo kinds o s ones we e used o he p oduc ion o he o a y que ns in he
assemblage om Yu a - S oyno: andesi e8 (Pl. 2/2:2, 3, 7, and 10), a olcanic ma e ial; and
sands one (Pl. 2/2:4–6 and 2:8), asedimen a y ma e ial. e only ou lie ep esen s he ca -
illus no. 9 (Pl. 2/2:9), o a(qua z) schis and, hus, ame amo phic de i a i e o sedimen a y
ocks (Vinx 2015, 387–390).9
All he agmen s o o a y que ns a e pa s o ca illi; he collec ion e ealed six Conical,
wo Hemisphe ical and one Cylind ical uppe s one. e Conical que ns a e ep esen ed by
wo agmen s wi hou a im (Fig. 2:2–3) and ou wi h asloping im (Fig. 2:4–7). e Hem-
isphe ical ca illi encompass one wi hou a im (Fig. 2:8) and one wi h a la im (Fig. 2:9).
Finally, he single ep esen an o Cylind ical uppe s ones has a la im10 (Fig. 2:10).
Diame e s o he que ns om Yu a - S oyno a y be ween 350 and 470 mm, heigh s be-
ween 67 and 109 mm; bo h dimensions we e measu ed a hei maximal ex en . Fi e o he
ca illi, ou Conical and one Cylind ical (Tabs. 1/2:4–7, 10), ha e ims wi h he wid h a ying
be ween 24 and 28 mm, one Hemisphe ical agmen (Tabs. 1/2:9) e ealed a la im o 66 mm.
Two Conical (Tabs. 1/2:2, 4) and one Cylind ical uppe s one (Tabs. 1/2:10) ha e p ese ed
ynd holes on he op. One o he ynd holes (Pl. 2/2:4) is pe o a ed h ough he en i e uppe
s one. Fou o he que ns ea u e asocke o he handle; h ee Conical (Fig. 2:3–5) ha e he
socke a ying be ween 16 and 24 mm in diame e and si ua ed on he side, one Hemisphe ical
ca illus (Fig. 2:8) e ealed he socke on i s op. Finally, diame e s o wo o he agmen s (Fig.
2:2, 3) a e ully p ese ed as he agmen s include he eye o he ca illus.
In ega d o hei diame e s, he uppe s ones wo ked o andesi e (Tabs. 1/2:2, 3, 7, and
10) ange be ween 370–450 mm, while hose wo ked o sands one (Tabs. 1/2:4, 5, 6 and 8)
show ala ge ange be ween 350–470 mm. As o he shapes, none o he basic ypes wi h
mo e han one ep esen a i e is es ic ed o one aw ma e ial. e Conical ca illi a e wo ked
ei he o he olcanic (Tabs. 1/2:2, 3 and 7) o o he sedimen a y ma e ial (Tabs. 1/2:4–6)
and he Hemisphe ical ca illi a e ep esen ed by one agmen o sands one(Tabs. 1/2:8)and
one made o (qua z) schis (Tabs. 1/2:9).
All he o a y que ns a e e y wo n and hei wo king su aces do no ea u e any emains
o d essing (see Pl. 2/2, esp. nos. 6 and 9 wi h lowe su aces ep esen ed). Rela i ely la ge
diame e s and small heigh s o he que ns in he assemblage indica e hei da ing o he Ro-
man pe iod.11 Two o he analysed o a y que ns (nos. 3 and 6) we e de ec ed as spolia in he
walls o he exca a ed house which gi es hem deposi ion da e a ound AD 218 o la e , as he
e minus an e quem. e eu ilisa ion o o a y que ns as building ma e ial in Yu a - S oyno
was o he i s ime obse ed al eady du ing he escue exca a ions in 2006 (Baka dzhie
2007, 239, ig. 2).
8 e agmen s we e de ined as andesi e due o bo h hei ligh - colou ed ma ix (compa ed o ag-
men no. 11, a esicula basal ), and hei po phy i ic appea ance. Howe e , due o he wea he ed
s a e o he agmen s, some in e e ences on he obse a ions canno be excluded.
9 Fo ade ailed s udy on he ypes o he iden i ied s ones, see Hauben hal 2022.
10 e same ype o que n s one was ound in Slome , Veliko Ta no o Dis ic , now pa o he expo-
si ion o he A chaeological Museum in So ia. Fo pho o, see I ano – on Bülow 2008, 80.
11 Fo compa ison, see Conical o a y que ns da ed om he 2nd cen u y BC o he 1s cen u y AD ound
in Romania and e e ed o as Dacian mill (Peacock 2013a, 70–71), he di ec p edecesso o he
o a y que ns in he examined a ea. ei measu emen s a y be ween 320–332 mm in diame e
and 112–156 mm in heigh (S anciu 1992).
96 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Fig. 2: Ro a y que ns; nos. 2–3: Conical ca illi wi hou im; nos. 4–7: Conical ca illi wi h sloping im;
no. 8: Hemisphe ical ca illus wi hou im; no. 9: Hemisphe ical ca illus wi h la im; no. 10: Cy-
lind ical ca illus wi h im. D awings by V. Doležálko á.
SEGMENTED MILL
Segmen ed o composi e mills a e cha ac e ised by olcanic ma e ial and, based on shapes
and numbe s o he segmen s, hey can be di ided in o h ee dis inc i e g oups (Peacock
2013b, 154–157). e way how hese mills unc ioned is no en i ely clea and p o okes an
ongoing discussion among esea che s, o e ing anumbe o possible econs uc ions
(S o ck– Teague 1952, ig. 40; B une 1997, 30–31, igs. 2, 3; Peacock 2013, 158–160;
Chaigneau 2017, 443, ig. 6). e easons o he segmen a ion o he s ones ha e no been
unambiguously de e mined ye . M. B une (1997, 33–35) compellingly a gues o he pa i-
ion o be a ibu ed o he simpli ica ion o he manu ac u ing p ocess and e u es Deon-
na’s heo y (1938, 135), who saw in he segmen a ion a ool o acili a ing he anspo . e
main enance is also as ong a gumen , as he segmen a ion allowed o he eplacemen o
apa icula piece when b oken, wi hou he necessi y o eplace he whole mill (Chaigneau
2017, 446). e ch onology is b oad, as he mills appea in he con ex s da ed om he 3 d
cen u y BC (Runnels 1981, 134) o he 5 h cen u y AD (Max ield– Peacock 2001). When
compa ed wi h o he milling ools, he segmen ed mills a e ela i ely a e. ey we e so a
encoun e ed only in G eece, Cen al Medi e anean and Egyp (Chaigneau 2017, 439–440,
ig. 1). ei a eness, a he han an ou come o hei limi ed use, can be asc ibed o he
97THE MILLING EQUIPMENT
di icul y o ecognise hese mills when disagg ega ed (Peacock 2013b, 162).12 Based on he
inds om Delos, his mill was no used in domes ic seings bu in bake ies (Deonna 1938,
135; B une 1997, 36).
e agmen no. 11 (Fig. 3:11; Pl. 2/1:11), adis inc i e ape ed slab o basal , a esicula
olcanic ock, ep esen s aunique ind in he assemblage. Based on i s ca e ul s udy and
compa a i e analysis, i is an inne s one o asegmen ed mill Type 1 (aÞe Peacock 2013a, 97;
2013b, 154–155, ig. 1.c). e slab is 220 mm wide a i s b oades end and he p ese ed leng h
is 275 mm. e b oken end na ows down o 200 mm. e b oad end has a ound ixing hole
o abou 27 mm in diame e and 70 mm in dep h.13
Fig. 3: Segmen ed mill; no. 11: inne s one ep esen ed by a ape ed slab. D awings by V. Doležálko á.
MORTARIA
Mo a ia consis o an open essel and apes le which is used o c ushing o pounding di e se
oods u s as well as p ocessing and mixing o he mae s,14 depending on he shape, ma e ial
and size o bo h o he pa s (Mo i z 1958, 22–28).
12 In he i s place, we in e p e ed he agmen as a ubbe cha ac e ised by aback - and - o h mo ion,
wi h one side handle socke p ese ed. Ou in e p e a ion an icipa ed one mo e handle on he
opposi e side o enable i s ope a ion. is econs uc ion, howe e , encoun e ed se e al p oblems
including he imp ac ical apezoid shape and he immense weigh o he agmen . ese pecu-
lia i ies, as hey in oduce ape ec i wi h apezoidal slabs used as inne s ones o segmen ed
mills, made us change he in e p e a ion o he agmen .
13 Compa e wi h measu emen s o ape ed slabs belonging o Delian segmen ed mills Type 1 ound
in Delos: he leng h equals 300 mm, he wid h 200 mm, he ape ing end na ows down o 150 mm,
ound holes on bo h ends a e 25 mm in diame e and 40 mm in dep h (Peacock 2013b, 154).
14 Besides g ain (see Plin. NH. 35.25 o A h. 3.100), he ancien li e a y sou ces men ion oods u s
such as d ied ish (Hd . 1.200.1) and meals made om di e se ing edien s, all pounded oge he in
amo a (A h. 9.70; A h. 14.57). O he ma e ials include d ugs and pigmen s (Plin. NH. 36.43), me-
98 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
e assemblage e ealed h ee agmen s o s one mo a ia. Two (nos. 12 and 13) a e ep e-
sen ed by apa o a im wi h an aached body. As he booms a e missing, he p ese ed
leng hs o he agmen s allow o es ablishing he minimal dep h o each o he essels. Un-
like he somewha massi e and oughly wo ked agmen s nos. 12 and 13, he hi d piece o
mo a no. 14 is ep esen ed by a e y ine wo ked handle. e handle e ealed no emains
o he body bu a im which allows o es ablishing he hickness o he mo a wall and i s
app oxima e diame e .
e mo a agmen no. 12 (Fig. 4:12; Pl. 2/3:12) was made o amic i ic ca bona e mud-
s one (Hauben hal 2022, no. 6, ab.1:6). I has aconical shape wi h he maximal inne diam-
e e o 117 mm and he minimal dep h o 107 mm. e ela i ely small diame e and ape ing
shape poin o i s p ima y unc ion ep esen ed by pounding a he han ubbing, wi h an
up and down mo ion p e ailing (S o ck– Teague 1952, 43–44). e inne wall e ealed e y
wo n aces o possible u ows.
e mo a agmen no. 13 (Fig. 4:13; Pl. 2/3:13), c ea ed om apy oclas , ep esen s an
open mo a wi h 360–365 mm o an inne diame e and minimal dep h o 141 mm. e inne
side e ealed clea aces o pa allel u ows (see he de ail in Pl. 2/3:13). e shape, size and
dicamen s (Plin. NH. 33.34; 34.23; 34.50; 34.51), poisons (Plu . De Iside 46), colou s (Plin. NH. 33.26;
35.25) and me als (Plin. NH. 33.35; 34.26; 34.50; 34.51).
Fig. 4: Mo a ia; no. 12: conical mo a ium; 13: open o m o mo a ium; 14: ho izon al handle aached
o mo a ium o an open o m. D awings by M. Kello á & V. Doležálko á.
99THE MILLING EQUIPMENT
d essing o he mo a poin o i s u iliza ion o ubbing a he han pounding, allowing o
an indisc imina e mo ion wi hin he conside ably la ge essel (S o ck– Teague 1952, 43–44).
e mo a handle no. 14 (Fig. 4:14; Pl. 2/3:14) is made o awhi e ma ble and i ep e
-
sen s a agmen o e y ine p oduc ion, an ou lie in he whole collec ion o he milling
equipmen . I looks like asmall ac o e ion and as such i was also published in he exca a ion
epo om he season in 2015 (Tušlo á e al. 2015, 246, pl. 10/2:3). Howe e , based on he
egional pa allels om Kabyle (unpublished mo a a he a chaeological base in Kabile),
15
Ki ilo o (S a a Zago a Dis ic )16 and Nicopolis ad Is um (Poul e 1995, 198), i ep esen s
one o h ee ho izon al handles, which oge he wi h aspou , symme ically placed on he
im, lined he mo a ia edges. e mo a ium had he shape o an open bowl wi h diame e
app oxima ely es ablished be ween 470 and 480 mm. Due o i s ou s anding ea men and
ma e ial, i is highly p obable his mo a ium was no connec ed wi h he educ ion o g ain.
Re e ences o i s possible unc ions can be aced in ancien li e a y sou ces, men ioning he
u ilisa ion o mo a ia when p epa ing medicamen s (Paus. 5.18.2.; Cels. 5.24), poisons o
he bal po ions (Plu . De Iside 46).
DISCUSSION
e milling equipmen ound in Yu a - S oyno, al hough he e ogeneous in ep esen ed shapes
and ways o u iliza ion, ea u es se e al common cha ac e is ics. None o he analysed que ns
is ch onologically sensi i e
17
and i implies ha all o hem migh ha e been in use du ing
any ime o he exis ence o he selemen . Only wo agmen s o he o a y que ns (nos. 3
and6), as hey we e ound as spolia in he walls o he house, we e clea ly used and des oyed
be o e he house was buil .
In gene al, he s a e o p ese a ion o all he inds sugges s ha hey had been des oyed
du ing hei u iliza ion and h own away o eused al eady in an iqui y. Fo ins ance, all he
o a y que ns a e agmen s o conside ably wo n ca illi: as uppe s ones we e much mo e
equen ly subjec s o des uc ion du ing milling han he lowe s ones, i was common o
eplace he ca illus whils he me a emained in use. Acco dingly, he mo a ia nos. 12 and 13
ha e hei booms missing, he mos common place o wea and inal b eak o in he case o
his milling ool. e na ow end o he slab om he segmen ed mill no. 11 is also missing.
e classi ica ion o o a y que ns compo s wi h he ypology sugges ed by D. Peacock
(2013a, 70–71) who iden i ied he Conical g oup as ypical o he Eas e n Medi e anean.
Nea ly 70% o he o a y que ns in he assemblage a e indeed Conical and ollow he cha ac-
e is ics asc ibed o he Roman pe iod. In pa icula , he ca illi iden i ied in he assemblage
om Yu a - S oyno each he maximal heigh be ween 67 and 109 mm and hei diame e
a ies be ween 350 and 470 mm.
15 Based on pe sonal obse a ions o P.Tušlo á a he deposi o y a he A chaeological base in Kabile
in 2017.
16 Published online as pa o he collec ion o he Bulga ian Academy o Sciences a he ime o w i -
ing his a icle, bu du ing e isions, un o una ely, he link as well as he whole se e wi h he
collec ion was no esponding. H ml: hp://collec ions.cl.bas.bg/EU/A hena/W0065.h ml ( isi ed
09/05/2019).
17 Saddle que ns and mo a ia we e he i s ools used by humans o g inding, da ing back o he
Uppe Palaeoli hic pe iod (Pipe ino e al. 2004; Alonso– F ankel 2017, 463), o a y que ns ap-
pea ed in he 5 h cen u y BC (Peacock 2013a, 37) and segmen ed mills we e i s documen ed du ing
he Hellenis ic pe iod (Peacock 2013b, 160–161). All o hem we e in use du ing he Roman pe iod.

100 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Conside ing he ind o a agmen o ab onze mili a y diploma (Boyano 2006, 235–242;
2008, 208–216) which poin s o he p esence o e e ans in Yu a - S oyno and he ac ha
a o a y que n was an inhe en pa o he equipmen o each single con ube nium (Webs e
1969, 131–132; Jod y 2011, 87), we may suppose ha some o he o a y que ns we e b ough o
he si e by soldie s. De ailed examina ion o he assemblage, howe e , does no con i m his
assump ion. One o he main cha ac e is ics o he o a y que ns p oduced o he a my is
hei s anda diza ion. Fi s ly, he maximum weigh o he whole que n should no o e each
30 kg, as i was ca ied oge he wi h 40 kg hea y en by one mule (Jod y 2011, 87). And, sec-
ondly, aking as an example he o a y que ns manu ac u ed in he Ei el Moun ains (Wes e n
Ge many), hei common cha ac e is ic was no only he olcanic ma e ial; hey all had an
a e age diame e o 400 mm and hei heigh equalled 100 mm (Hö e 1994, 26). is implies
ha he que ns p oduced o he Roman a my should be iden i iable based on he co ela ion
be ween he ma e ial and size. Looking a he a ie y o measu emen s, mo phology and
ma e ials de ec ed in he assemblage om Yu a - S oyno, hey do no seem o compo wi h
he Roman s anda dized p oduc ion. ei local o igin suppo s he icini y o all he de ined
aw ma e ials, including (basal ic) andesi e, basal , ma ble, mic i e, sands one and (qua z)
schis , all in a adius o 10 km a ound he selemen . As he aw ma e ials o he milling
s ones, excep wo agmen s, we e iden i ied by naked eye obse a ion in he ield only, he
ac ual sou ces o he s one a e no possible o be de ined.18 Al hough we canno exclude ha
he agmen s come om di e en manu ac u ing places o ha only one o hem was pa
o he equipmen o he con ube nium, we end o in e p e hem all as local p oduc s since
also he ma e ials a e locally a ailable.
e slab o he segmen ed mill no. 11 ep esen s an ou s anding disco e y in he con ex
o Yu a - S oyno. No only ha i is he i s mill o his kind known om he e i o y, bu
i s p esence also indica es links wi h he G eek wo ld. Las bu no leas , he segmen ed mill
migh also sugges an exis ence o abake y a he si e.
CONCLUSION
e milling equipmen om Yu a - S oyno e ealed ahe e ogeneous collec ion including one
agmen o asaddle que n (no. 1), nine uppe s ones o o a y que ns (nos. 2–10), one slab
o asegmen ed mill (no. 11) and h ee mo a ia (nos. 12–14).
e saddle que n ep esen ed in he assemblage is a e y wo n agmen o me a e. e
agmen o he o iginally la slab made o (basal ic) andesi e ea u es ce ain conca i y, mos
likely de eloped wi h i s u ilisa ion. is ype o milling ool is commonly o alocal p oduc ion.
18 Ap o enance analysis equi es compa a i e samples om po en ial sou ces, as well as scien i ic
analy ical me hods such as pe og aphic analysis and di e se (ins umen al) geochemical analyses
o bo h he compa a i e samples and he a e ac s (He z 2001, 449–451). Howe e , amo a no.
12 and he agmen o asegmen ed mill no. 11 ha e been analysed using hin - sec ion - analysis
(Hauben hal 2022, nos. 6–7, ab.1:6–7). Basal , he aw ma e ial o he agmen no. 11, belongs
o he mos abundan olcanic ocks wi h a ela i ely uni o m appea ance and he a ibu ion o
asou ce, hus, equi es chemical analyses, i.e. wa eleng h - dispe si e X - ay luo escence analysis
(WD XRF) (Williams -Tho pe 1988). e same applies o he mic i ic agmen no. 12, aca bona e
ock; o he ca bona es, i.e. limes ones, ha e been success ully alloca ed o hei sou ces using
s able iso ope analysis (Wenne – He z 1992) and neu on ac i a ion analysis (NAA) (Holmes–
Ha bo le– Blanc 1994).
101THE MILLING EQUIPMENT
Based on he ypology o Peacock (2013a), he o a y que ns include six Conical, wo Hem-
isphe ical and one Cylind ical ca illus, u he di e si ied using he p o iling o hei uppe
aces (S aubi z 2007) o ca illi wi hou im, wi h sloping im and wi h la im (see Tab.1).
e appea ance o he basic shapes compo s wi h he geog aphic di ision sugges ed by Pea-
cock, as he Conical shape is ypical o he e i o y o Eas e n Eu ope. As maximal diame e s
o he ca illi a y be ween 350 and 470 mm, and heigh s be ween 67 and 109 mm, hey can
wi h ahigh p obabili y all be da ed o he Roman pe iod. Two o hem, bo h o Conical ype,
we e used as spolia in he ounda ions o he exca a ed house and he eby hei deposi ion
co esponds wi h he house cons uc ion which happened in o aÞe he 20s o he 3 d c. AD.
e a ie y o measu emen s, mo phology and ma e ials de ec ed in he assemblage sug-
ges s a he local o igin o he milling equipmen han he Roman s anda dized p oduc ion
which could ha e been b ough o Yu a - S oyno by soldie s as pa o hei equipmen . e
ma e ial used o he p oduc ion o ca illi includes (basal ic) andesi e, sands one and (qua z)
schis . All he s ones a e a ailable in he icini y o he selemen which allows o hei local
o igin. Howe e , his sugges ion was hi he o no examined by u he analyses.
e basal ic ape ed slab ep esen s a agmen o one o he inne s ones o asegmen ed
mill Type 1 o Peacock and poin s o he possible exis ence o abake y a he si e. e pa al-
lels a e known only om G eece, Sicily and Egyp and he exis ence o asegmen ed mill in
Yu a - S oyno hus migh demons a e con ac s wi h he G eek wo ld. As he ch onology is
b oad and spans be ween he 3 d cen u y BC and he 5 h cen u y AD, i could ha e been used
du ing any phase o he selemen . e ind ep esen s he i s de ec ed segmen ed mill in
he e i o y o Bulga ia. Howe e , his ype o mill is easily o be misin e p e ed when dis-
agg ega ed and, as such, Yu a - S oyno ce ainly does no ep esen asingle place in Bulga ia
whe e asegmen ed mill was used. We hope ha he awa eness o i s possible occu ence in
he e i o y o Bulga ia p omp s new s udies on segmen ed mills in he egion, enla ging
i s spa ial dis ibu ion.
e mo a ia include one conical and wo open essels. e conical mo a ium made o
mic i e has he maximal inne diame e o 117 mm and he minimal dep h o 107 mm. Based
on he measu emen s, he mo a ium was used o pounding. e open mo a ium made ou
o py oclas e ealed adiame e be ween 360 and 365 mm and minimal dep h o 141 mm. e
inne wall o he agmen shows clea aces o pa allel u ows. e measu emen s o he
essel sugges i s u ilisa ion o ubbing. e las mo a ium was made o whi e ma ble, wi h
supposedly one spou and h ee ounded handles egula ly placed along i s im. e mo a -
ium ep esen s an ou lie in he en i e collec ion no only due o he used ma e ial, bu also
due o i s ine ea men . Acco dingly, he open mo a ium wi h diame e be ween 470 and
480 mm is sui able o u ilisa ion in a ep esen a i e con ex and a he han o he educ ion
o g ain, i migh ha e been used o mixing o he bs o medicamen s.
Al hough he collec ion in oduced in his a icle depic s only a ac ion o he equipmen
connec ed wi h milling ac i i ies once used in Yu a - S oyno, he di e si y o he ep esen ed
ypes, ma e ials and hei mo phological a iabili y should se e as ademons a ion o he
a ie y o milling ools possible o be ound wi hin simila con ex s in he e i o y o he
Roman  ace.
102 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
ABBREVIATIONS
AB = A chaeologica Bulga ica
AOR = Археологически открития иразкопки
BAR = B i ish A chaeological Repo s
JASc = Jou nal o A chaeological Science
JRS = Jou nal o Roman S udies
JRomPo S = Jou nal o Roman Poe y S udies
SH = S udia He cynia
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I ano , R.– on Bülow, G. 2008:  acia. Eine Röhmische P o inz au de Balkanhalbinsel. Mainz am Rhein.
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I ano a, N. 2019: Socioeconomic Implica ions o Ce eal C op P oduc ion in Inland  ace du ing he La e I on Age.
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51–68.
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S.– B iso o, V.– Galland - C e y, S.– Jod y, F.– Lagadec, J.-P.– Lepaumie , H.– Longepie e, S.–
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110 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
sample in PPL and XPL espec i ely. Nume ous oundish esicles clea ly isible as b igh whi e
spo s in PPL cha ac e ize i s dis inc ly agmen al ex u e (Pl. 3/5:1 and 3). O he componen s
a e py oxene and nume ous opaque phases. While he py oxene c ys als appea colou less
in PPL (Pl. 3/5:1 and 3) and in b igh in e e ence colou s (Pl. 3/5:2 and 4), he opaque phases
a e no anslucen and appea black ega dless o he mic oscope’sseings. Subsequen ly,
he lae canno be de e mined mo e speci ically wi hou he applica ion o di e en analy-
sis me hods. In he examined sample, hey oÞen show an in e g ow h wi h ib ous g eenish
chlo i e (Pl. 3/5:2 and 4).
e agmen no. 7, on he o he hand, ep esen s a esicula basal ic ock, i.e. po ous
la a s one (Pl.3/5:5). I s ma ix o olcanic glass demons a es he apid cooling p ocess o an
e up ed magma (Vinx 2015, 221). Bo h he p edominan ly elonga ed esicles and he nume ous
la h - shaped plagioclase eldspa s wi h amean g ain - size o ca.100 μm show ap e e en ial
o ien a ion and, hus, emphasize he luidal s uc u e o he sampled ock (Pl.3/5:6). is is
pa icula ly isible whe e he plagioclase la hs ollow he ou lines o po es o phenoc ys s.
e second a e la ge c ys als embedded in he glassy g oundmass. Pl.3/5:7 and 8 depic
an agg ega e o such phenoc ys s con aining winned plagioclase eldspa s (g ain - sizes ca.
500 μm o 1.1 mm) ha show g ey o whi e in e e ence colou s and py oxene c ys als (g ain-
-sizes ca. 250–700 μm) ha a e colou less in PPL and appea wi h b igh in e e ence colou s.
ough less nume ous as in he py oclas ic sample abo e, he la a s one con ains opaque
phases as well (Pl. 3/5:5–7).
THE KAMENETS QUARRY
Apa om he exca a ion and he su ey, in 2016 he SAP eam also explo ed and sampled
anea by ancien qua ying a ea in he ame o aone - day pilo s udy. e a ea is si ua ed jus
8km no h - eas o he si e, sou h - eas o he mode n Kamene s illage.1 Besides adesc ip ion
o he geology o he su ounding en i onmen and ield obse a ions in he qua ying a ea
his second pa o he a icle includes also ab ie pe og aphic s udy o i s specimens. In
Map 1 he dis ibu ion o he sampling poin s and he spa ial ela ions o Yu a - S oyno and
he qua y a e illus a ed.
THE ANCIENT QUARRYING AREA
Du ing he p ospec ion o he a ea he SAP eam documen ed se e al ex ac ion poin s cha -
ac e ized by sepa a ion enches and aces o ools such as qua y picks and i on wedges
(Fig.1; see also Map 1 o he geog aphical posi ion o hese ex ac ion poin s). Howe e ,
since he a ea is so densely o e g own ha he p ospec ion has no e ealed any da able
inds (Fan 2008, 122) i was impossible o a ibu e ace ain ch onology o he qua y. Due
o he same eason, he ou lined ex en o he qua ying a ea bases solely on he explo ed
su ace, i.e. i is possible ha he a ea encompasses u he ex ac ion poin s ou side he
indica ed limi s.
1Iwould like o hank Geo gi Ilie , he es au a eu om he Regional His o ical Museum o Yambol,
who kindly showed us he loca ion o he qua y, o he wise e y ha d o be iden i ied as he whole
a ea is densely o e g own.

111THIN-SECTION ANALYSIS OF SELECTED STONE OBJECTS FROM YURTA-STROYNO
Map 1: Map depic ing he p ospec ed ex en o he Kamene s Qua y and he dis ibu ion o he sam-
pling poin s wi hin his a ea, as well as he geog aphical posi ion in ela ion o Yu a-S oyno and
simila geological s uc u es wi hin a10 km adius a ound he si e (au ho : B. Weisso á; sou ce
o geological da a: Pe o a– Sa o – Filipo 1988; Dabowski e al. 1989).
112 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Fig. 1: Wo king aces wi hin he qua ying a ea; 1: ex ac ion si e showing aces o qua y pick and
wedges (pho o by C. Hauben hal); 2: sepa a ion ench o abou 40 cm wid h (pho o by P.Tušlo á).
113THIN-SECTION ANALYSIS OF SELECTED STONE OBJECTS FROM YURTA-STROYNO
e geological maps indica e ma bles and me amo phic limes ones o his a ea (Pe o a–
Sa o – Filipo 1988; Dabowski e al. 1989). is iden i ica ion i s well o he mac oscopic
obse a ions in he ield: he ine - g ained c ys alline ock ea u es ei he whi ish o g eyish
colou s wi h occasional da k eddish eins o he appea ance o ab eccia composed o he
same ma e ial wi hin a eddish colou ed ma ix (Pl. 3/6:11–14).
KAMENETS SPECIMENS
e ma e ial o all ou qua y samples nos. 11–14 consis s o mos ly ine - g ained, mul i-
ply winned subhed al calci e c ys als wi h a a he he e ogeneous g ain - size dis ibu ion
and, hus, ep esen s ine - g ained ma ble. e c ys al g ain - sizes co e he ange be ween
20–200 μm wi h amgs abou 100 μm (Pl. 3/7:1–4). Howe e , no. 13 ep esen s an ou lie as
i also con ains c ys als o he MGS 500 μm (Pl. 3/7:5–6). While he s uc u e o he c ys al
laice is p edominan ly o ag anoblas ic cha ac e (Pl. 3/7:1–2), in cases o he nos. 12 and
13 he calci e c ys als show ap e e ed elonga ion di ec ion (Pl. 3/7:3–4). All o he samples
ea u e con en s o i on hyd oxide– mos ly in he shape o conspicuous s yloli es (Pl. 3/7:2–3
and esp. 7). In he case o nos. 13 and 14, he s uc u e o he ock appea s la gely b eccia ed
(Pl. 3/7:7–8).
DISCUSSION
While ape og aphic analysis based on he desc ibed ea u es is no su icien o e i y o
exclude he in es iga ed qua y as apossible sou ce, his sec ion b ie ly compa es he in es-
iga ed ea u es in o de o p o ide a i s assessmen o he ela ionship be ween inds and
a ailable esou ces. Howe e , his discussion can only be p elimina y on he basis o he
hin - sec ion analyses alone and needs o be con i med by ap ospec ion o he su ounding
a ea and u he (geochemical) analyses (Rapp– Hill 1998, 140; see e.g. Klemm– Klemm 1993,
193–197 on he combina ion o pe og aphy and induced plasma spec ome y o limes one
p o enancing).
As al eady indica ed by he geological maps (Pe o a– Sa o – Filipo 1988; Dabow-
skie al. 1989), he analysis o he specimens om he qua y esul ed in iden i ying all o hem
as low - g ade o ine - g ained ma bles. Subsequen ly, acompa a i e s udy wi h he mic i ic
o olcanic samples is obsole e and he ollowing discussion ocuses on he ma ble g oup. I
examines he inds o Yu a - S oyno (nos. 1, 3, 4, 8 and 9) in he ligh o he mo phological
cha ac e is ics o he qua y specimens (nos. 11–14).
Based on i s indi idual cha ac e is ics, he sample o capi al no. 1 i s well o he qua y
specimens: no only do i s g ain - sizes co e asimila ange (20–200 μm), i also sha es he
same mgs (abou 20 μm and 100 μm) and he he e ogeneous g ain - size dis ibu ion wi h he
Kamene s specimens. Addi ionally, he g anoblas ic s uc u e o he c ys al laice pa ially
cha ac e ized by ap e e ed elonga ion di ec ion and he subhed al shape o he indi idual
c ys als a e common ea u es. Finally, and al hough in amino amoun , he sample also con-
ains i on hyd oxides same as he qua y specimens. Apa om hese, he same applies o
he ubble s one no. 4. Bo h samples migh conclusi ely ep esen ma e ial om he sampled
qua y si e.
While he cylind ical wo ked s one no. 3 sha es mos o i s cha ac e is ics wi h he a o e-
men ioned samples as well as he specimens, i also con ains much la ge calci e c ys als wi h
aMGS o abou 1.5 mm. e la ges MGS measu ed o he qua y on specimen no. 13 measu es
114 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
me ely a hi d o his size (ca. 500 μm). Howe e , conside ing he p e ailing simila i ies, he
sample no. 3 migh o igina e om he qua y despi e i s la ge MGS.
e wo ked s ones nos. 8 and 9 ep esen adi e en case: no only is he ange o hei
espec i e calci e c ys al g ain - sizes wide , bu hey do also bo h ea u e la ge mgs as well as
less o no i on hyd oxides as o eign phases espec i ely (Tab.2). Ano he common ea u e
o sample nos. 8 and 9 dis inguishing hem om he o he ma ble samples is hei lack o
ac ys al laice wi h p e e ed elonga ion di ec ion. Howe e , since his is no acommon
cha ac e is ic o all qua y specimens i is neglec ed in he cou se o his discussion. Con-
side ing he la ge c ys als in sample no. 3 (1.0–1.5 mm) and, mo e impo an ly, he MGS o
specimen no. 13 (500 μm), he wo ked s ones nos. 8 and 9 do no seem o be conspicuous
ou lie s. Ne e heless, hei la ge mgs o 300 μm ( o 400 μm) emains wi hou apa al-
lel among he specimens. As does he o al lack o i on hyd oxides o wo ked s one no. 8.
While i could be a gued ha he analysed hin - sec ions only ep esen alimi ed e e ence
Fig. 2: Combined boxplo and iolin g aph isualising he ange o g ain sizes, mgs, and MGS o he
ma ble samples as well as o he qua y specimens.
115THIN-SECTION ANALYSIS OF SELECTED STONE OBJECTS FROM YURTA-STROYNO
poin (M ozek -Wysocka 2014, 108), he p e ailing di e ences sugges , ha samples nos. 8
and 9 a leas do no o igina e om he sampled ex ac ion poin s and ep esen a he
a ela ed ma e ial.
As he dense ege a ion migh ha e hinde ed he iden i ica ion o all ex ac ion si es a
Kamene s as well as blu ed he ex en o he qua ying a ea, i is possible ha he sampling
was no ep esen a i e o all a ie ies o he sou ce ock. Mo eo e , conside ing he geol-
ogy o he egion (Pe o a– Sa o – Filipo 1988; Dabowski e al. 1989) o he ex ac ion
poin s ea u ing ela ed ma e ial a e no unlikely: Map 1 highligh s ock s uc u es consis -
ing la gely o ma bles and/o me amo phic limes ones wi hin a adius o only 10 km om
Yu a - S oyno. is map elucida es he possibili y o ancien qua ies e en close o he si e.
Asugges i e indica o o he ex ac ion o he sampled ma bles a ano he qua y migh be
ha none o he inds om Yu a - S oyno ep esen s he b eccia widely dis ibu ed on he
Kamene s Qua y si e.
CONCLUSION
e analyses o he en sampled s one objec s allowed o he iden i ica ion o hei indi-
idual ock ma e ial co esponding o he h ee g oups a) ine - g ained ma ble, b) mic i ic
ca bona e muds one, and c) olcanic ocks ep esen ed by apy oclas ic ock and abasal ic
la a s one. Pa icula ly o he mic i ic samples (nos. 2, 5 and 6) and he py oclas ic ock
(no.10), he mic oscopic assessmen g ea ly imp o ed he p e ious unde s anding o he
aw ma e ial based on maco scopic obse a ions. e g ouping o he objec s by s one
ype also allows o some mo e obse a ions: besides he wo wo ked s ones o unde ined
unc ion, he ine - g ained ma ble seems o ha e p incipally been used o a chi ec u al
pu poses. In compa ison, he unc ionali y o he mic i ic and olcanic ocks seems o
ha e been mo e e sa ile– p obably due o hei e y ine g ain - sizes, highe densi y
and ha dness. A leas one bu possibly wo mic i ic samples, he capi al and he massi e
s one (nos. 2 and 5), ha e been used o a chi ec u al pu poses. e hi d mic i ic sample
(no. 6) and he la a s one (no. 7) ep esen milling equipmen . While he unc ionali y o
he py oclas ic sample is ambiguous, asimila u iliza ion seems plausible conside ing i s
ma e ial p ope ies.
Mo eo e , he mic oscopic examina ion con i med ha he sampled qua y sou h - eas o
Kamene s exploi s ( ine - g ained / low - g ade) ma bles. I also allowed acompa a i e analysis
o he qua y specimens and he sampled ma ble objec s o Yu a - S oyno. Due o he me h-
odology o he hin - sec ion analysis, he ques ion whe he he ma ble a e ac s o igina e om
he sampled qua y o no was mainly app oached by acompa ison o he mo phological
cha ac e is ics o he calci e c ys als (e.g. size, shape, s uc u e, winning) as well as o eign
phases. On his basis, i seems highly p obable ha he samples aken om he capi al (no. 1)
and om he ounda ions o he exca a ed house (no. 4) ep esen locally sou ced ma e ial as
a ailable in Kamene s Qua y. While he cylind ical wo ked s one (no. 3) is closely ela ed o
he Kamene s ma e ial, he wo wo ked s ones (nos. 8 and 9) ep esen a he ma e ial om
aso a unknown ex ac ion poin . Howe e , since he geological map indica es amuch la ge
a ea ich on ma bles and/o me amo phic limes ones in he su oundings o Yu a - S oyno,
he exis ence o o he ancien qua ies wi h asimila o ela ed ma e ial is highly p obable.
e e o e, he iden i ica ion o he Kamene s Qua y as he sou ce ep esen s one p obable
scena io a he han an only op ion. While ap ospec ion o o he ancien qua ying ac i i ies
in he a ea migh shed some mo e ligh on he ancien use o he a ailable esou ces, he u u e

116 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
applica ion o an in ensi ied mic oscopy and geochemical analy ic me hods is essen ial o liÞ
he p elimina y discussion o he p o enance po en ial o ap ope p o enance analysis. e
lae would also be bene icial o he mic i ic and olcanic samples whose p o enance could
no be u he discussed he e due o alack o compa a i e ma e ial and analyses.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Iwould like o exp ess my since e hanks o he supe iso s o he Yu a - S oyno A chaeo-
logical P ojec , D .Ba bo a Weisso á, D .Pe a Tušlo á and D .S e an Baka dzhie , o gi ing
me he oppo uni y o ake pa in he ield season o 2016 and p ocess he hin - sec ions o
he s ones and he eby con ibu e o he p ojec , and o P o .D . Be nha d S öckhe and
Ca oline Man eyM.Sc. o hei help, pa ience and o p o iding me wi h he possibili y o
p epa e he hin - sec ions and conduc he analyses a he Ins i u e o Geology, Mine alogy
and Geophysics o Ruh - Uni e si y Bochum.
ABBREVIATIONS
SH = S udia He cynia
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Dabowski e al. 1989 = Дабовски, Хр.– Савов, С.– Чаталов, Г.– Шиляфов, Г. 1994: Геоложка Карта на
България. Елхово (K-35-066) 1:100,000.
Fan , J.C. 2008, Qua ying and S onewo king. In: J.P.Oleson (ed.): e Ox o d Handbook o Enginee ing and
Technology in he Classical Wo ld. Ox o d, 121–135.
Klemm, R.– Klemm, D.D. 1993: S eine und S einb üche im Al en Ägyp en. Be lin.
McKenzie, W.S.– Adams, A.E. 1994: AColou A las o Rocks and Mine als in in Sec ion. London.
McKenzie, W.S.– Donaldson, C.H.– Guil o d, C. 1982: A las o Igneous Rocks and hei Tex u es. Essex.
M ozek - Wysocka, M. 2014: Ancien Ma bles: P o enance De e mina ion by A chaeome ic S udy. In: D.
Michalska– M. Szczepaniak (eds.): Geoscience in A chaeome y. Me hods and Case S udies. Poznań, 97–116.
Pe o a– Sa o – Filipo 1988 = Петрова, А.– Савов, С.– Филипов, Л. 1988: Геоложка Карта на България.
Ямвол (K-35-054) 1:100,000.
Reedy, C.L. 1994: in - Sec ion Pe og aphy in S udies o Cul u al Ma e ial. Jou nal o he Ame ican Ins i u e
o Conse a ion 33:2, 115–129.
Tušlo á, P. – Weisso á, B. – Baka dzhie , S. 2022: e Final Exca a ion Repo . In: P. Tušlo a – B. Weisso-
a– S. Baka dzhie (eds.): e Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec . S udies on he Roman Ru al SeÄlemen
in  ace. SH Monog aphs 2. P aha, 24–52.
Vinx, R.2015: Ges einsbes immung im Gelände. Be lin.
Weisso á, B. 2022: Shedding Ligh on A chi ec u e o Roman Ru al Selemen s in  ace. Ce amic and
S one Building Ma e ials om Yu a - S oyno. In: P.Tušlo á– B. Weisso á– S. Baka dzhie (eds.): e
Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec . S udies on he Roman Ru al SeÄlemen in  ace. SH Monog aphs 2.
P aha, 70–89.
117THIN-SECTION ANALYSIS OF SELECTED STONE OBJECTS FROM YURTA-STROYNO
Weisso á, B.– Hauben hal, C.– Doležálko á, V. 2022: e Milling Equipmen . In: P.Tušlo á– B. Weiss-
o á– S. Baka dzhie (eds.): e Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec . S udies on he Roman Ru al SeÄlemen
in  ace. SH Monog aphs 2. P aha, 90–105.
Weisso á, B. – Tušlo á, P. – Baka dzhie , S. 2022: Sys ema ic Selec i e Su ey o Yu a-S oyno. A Me h-
odological App oach o Si es Hea ily Dis u bed by Loo e s. In: P. Tušlo á – B. Weisso á – S. Baka dzhie
(eds.): e Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec . S udies on he Roman Ru al SeÄlemen in  ace. SH Mono-
g aphs 2. P aha, 53–69.
Cla issa Hauben hal
Ruh - Uni e si ä Bochum
Ins i u ü A chäologische WissenschaÞen
Am Be gbaumuseum 31, D-44791 Bochum
cla issa.hauben hal@ ub.de
118 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
The Epig aphic Finds om Yu a-S oyno in aRegional
Con ex
Pe a Heřmánko á
ABSTRACT
In he pas wo decades, se e al epig aphic monumen s ha e been ound a he selemen o Yu a - S oyno
and i s immedia e icini y. ei disco e y con ibu ed o he a chaeological knowledge o he si e bu also
placed he selemen in o ab oade con ex o he middle Tundzha Ri e egion. is chap e examines
in de ail h ee insc ip ions associa ed wi h he si e which we e ound be o e 2014, and h ee objec s wi h
epig aphic alue and eigh g a i i ound du ing he Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec in 2014–2016. e
discussion o all 14 epig aphic objec s and hei egional compa anda a e imp o ing ou unde s anding o
he selemen ’scha ac e and i s links o o he si es in he egion. Based on he ex ual e idence om he
insc ip ions, i seems Yu a - S oyno and he mili a y camp a Kabyle, loca ed some 34 km no h o he se -
lemen we e in e connec ed du ing he 2nd c. AD by pe sonal and mili a y associa ions alike.
KEYWORDS
Bulga ia;  ace; Kabyle; G eek and La in insc ip ions; epig aphy; egional ne wo ks.
EPIGRAPHIC FINDS FROM YURTA-STROYNO
Se e al epig aphic monumen s associa ed wi h he Roman selemen o Yu a - S oyno we e
ound up o da e. ey we e epo ed as indi idual inds o he Regional His o ical Museum o
Yambol (RIM) o disco e ed du ing he a chaeological p ospec ion and exca a ion o he si e
conduc ed by he RIM in 2006–2007, o , mos ecen ly, exca a ed du ing he Yu a - S oyno
A chaeological P ojec (SAP) in 2014–2016.
Be o e SAP, he epig aphic objec s ound a he si e consis ed o ab onze mili a y diploma
agmen , one ma ble pla e agmen depic ing aho se ide , and one ma ble pla e wi h an
insc ip ion men ioning aRoman amily A ilius (Baka dzhie 2008; Boyano 2007).
e i ems unco e ed om he exca a ions be ween 2014 and 2016 as pa o SAP ep esen
awide a ie y o inds, ei he bea ing an insc ip ion o p o iding objec s wi hou an insc ibed
ex bu showing e y simila cha ac e is ics wi h he exis ing epig aphic monumen s om
he egion. e epig aphic objec s unco e ed du ing SAP include ama ble pla e agmen
depic ing aho se ide (Pl. 4/1:3), a e acoa plaque wi h G eek insc ip ion and elie o
a emple (Fig. 1), an insc ibed b ick (Pl. 4/2), and eigh poe y she ds con aining alphabe ic
and pic o ial g a i i (Fig. 2). Fo he o e iew and hei a chaeological con ex , see Tab.1
below. e epig aphic inds a e di ided in o g oups by hei ma e ial and discussed oge he
wi h hei pa allels om he Roman wo ld.
MILITARY DIPLOMA
One agmen o aLa in mili a y diploma has been disco e ed a Yu a - S oyno and published
by Ilian Boyano (2007; AE 2007, 1259), now displayed a he Museum o he A chaeological
119THE EPIGRAPHIC FINDS FROM YURTA-STROYNO IN AREGIONAL CONTEXT
Pa k o  acian and Ancien Ci y o Kabile.1 e mili a y diploma was c ea ed and gi en o
he soldie a he ime o discha ge om he a my. As was cus oma y in he Roman a my, he
soldie was honou ably discha ged om du y aÞe 25 yea s o se ice, o 26 yea s in he case
o he na y. In mos cases, he e e an ecei ed Roman ci izenship and some imes was gi en
apiece o land in one o he Roman p o inces (Ga dine 2000, 80). e e e ans and hei
amilies kep he diplomas as e idence o hei social s a us and pas se ice.
e econs uc ed ex indica es he e e an se ed in he Roman impe ial lee Classis
P ae o ia Misenensis, named aÞe i s ha bou a Misenum in he Bay o Naples, ep esen ing
one o he wo mos impo an Roman Impe ial lee s (S a 1975, 13–21). Mos sailo s o
he Classis P ae o ia Misenensis we e ec ui ed in he Roman Eas , whe e he lee also oÞen
1‘Kabyle’ ep esen s he o m used in ancien sou ces, including insc ip ions and li e a y ex s,
while ‘Kabile’ is he spelling a ian used in con empo a y Bulga ian. Kabyle was an ancien ci y,
loca ed on he bends o he Ri e Tundzha in he no he n pa o he Yambol Dis ic , some 34 km
no h o Yu a - S oyno. Kabyle is eco ded by he ancien sou ces al eady a he ime o Philipp II
o Macedon as aMacedonian mili a y ou pos and du ing he Roman imes, i se ed as amili a y
base o Roman auxilia y uni s (Velko 1983, 233–234).
Fig. /
Pl.
Yu a-S oyno # /
Re e ence SU T ench /
Polygon
Finding
con ex
Ma e-
ial Objec Lan-
guage
Insc ip ion /
Tex
Ch on-
ology
×Boyano 2007;
AE 2007, 1259 su ace × ind p e-
2006 b onze mili a y
diploma La in
Ex : RELI. N (?)
NSTANTI
PT ET RECOGN
XA EST ROM
IVI AVG
In : MISENEN
XXVI STI
SIONE
FILISQ
VS QVA
aÞe
mid-2nd
c. AD
Fig. 1
SY15_079; SY15_080;
SY15_178; SY15_179;
SY15_180; SY15_414;
SY15_415; SY15_419
SU001 ×RT soil,
SAP poe y g a i i ×A, H, X 1s –3 d c.
AD
Fig. 2 SF15_218 SU001 95E_100N RT soil,
SAP
e aco-
a
o i e
pla e G eek ΠΥΤΝΙΟΥ2nd–3 d
c. AD (?)
Pl. 4/1:1 Baka dzhie 2008,
471–472, no. 1 × ×
exca a ion
2007 by
RIM
s one
ho se
ide
pla e
× × Roman
pe iod
Pl. 4/1:2 Baka dzhie 2008,
471–472, no. 2 × ×
exca a ion
2007 by
RIM
ma ble pla e G eek ΑΒΙΛΛΙΟΥRoman
pe iod
Pl. 4/1:3 SF15_080 SU002 105E_100N
wall o
he house
exca a ed
by SAP
ma ble
ho se
ide
pla e
× × P io o
AD 218
Pl. 4/2 SY16_AC_030 su ey G09 SAP clay i ed
b ick G eek ΗΘΕΟC
Roman
pe iod
(luna e
sigma)
Tab.1: An o e iew o all insc ip ions and objec s wi h epig aphic po en ial associa ed wi h he
selemen a Yu a-S oyno.
126 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
G a i i on poe y a e documen ed a majo Hellenis ic si es in Bulga ia such as Seu hop-
olis, Pis i os, Kabyle, Sbo yano o o Halka Buna (Dimi o – Chichiko a– Alexie a 1978,
22–23; Chichiko a 1984, 52–53, 74; Doma adzka 1996, 89–94; Lozano 2002, 197–201; Do-
ma adzka 2005, 296–307; 2013, 198–206; Dana 2015, 248–249), bu hey a e a ely published
in aRoman con ex . Un o una ely, he cu en co pus o insc ip ions on poe y om Yu a-
-S oyno is oo small o make any conclusions abou hei meaning o he le el o li e acy o
he local inhabi an s.
THE SETTLEMENT AT YURTA-STROYNO IN AREGIONAL CONTEXT
e discussed collec ion o inds ep esen s adi e se a ay o epig aphic objec s ha we e
likely p oduced du ing he Roman Impe ial Pe iod11 and used a Yu a - S oyno o i s immedi-
a e icini y. e pe iod o epig aphic ac i i y on he si e co esponds wi h he o e all peak o
he epig aphic ac i i y in  ace, bu also wi h he es ablishmen o he pe manen mili a y
camp a Kabyle and he mili a y e o ms o Sep imius Se e us in  ace (Dana 2015, 253;
Janoucho a 2017, 190).
e selemen a Yu a - S oyno held as a egic posi ion in he egion o he middle
Tundzha Ri e nea he econs uc ed oad connec ing Kabyle and P opon is (Madzha o
2009, 237). Mo eo e , he si e was con enien ly loca ed in he dis ance o app oxima ely
one day a el om he auxilia y uni s a ioned a Kabyle, making Yu a - S oyno o simila
selemen s in he neighbou hood an ideal candida e o asub - egional cen e ha would
manage and gua d he sou he n pa o he sphe e o in luence o Kabyle. e connec ion o
he si e wi h he auxilia y camp a Kabyle is u he s eng hened by he A ilius amily name
aes ed on insc ip ions ound in bo h places, indica ing membe s o he same e e an amily
we e ope a ing in he en i e egion. Addi ional mili a y links o he si e a Yu a - S oyno a e
s eng hened by he exis ence o he b onze mili a y diploma, sugges ing apa o he pop-
ula ion was likely o (ex)mili a y backg ound and seled in u al  ace aÞe he hono a y
discha ge in he second hal o he 2nd cen u y AD. Ye , he numisma ic e idence om Yu a-
-S oyno, albei hea ily co up ed by loo ing ac i i ies, does no indica e any di ec mone a y
exchange be ween he wo selemen s in he Roman imes (Heřmánko á 2022).
As o he ci ilian aspec s o li e, he disco e y o he o i e plaque wi h elie deco a ion
and insc ip ion in G eek, as well as he insc ibed b ick wi h he G eek dedica ion o an un-
known emale dei y, o he p esence o he ho se ide pla es, may indica e he local popula ion
was well embedded in he sys em o belie s cha ac e is ic o  ace o he Roman pe iod. e
wo ho se ide elie s ound a Yu a - S oyno ep esen a ypical o i e monumen o he
Roman pe iod eco ded in la ge numbe s all o e  ace (Dimi o a 2002, 210). Acco ding o
Kaza ow (1938) and Oppe mann (2006), app oxima ely 50 si es wi h he ho se ide elie ha e
been disco e ed along he middle Tundzha Ri e Valley. Se en o he s one elie s depic ing
ho se ide we e execu ed in asimila way as he exempla s om Yu a - S oyno, depic ing
agalloping ho se wi h a ide in shallow elie , asubca ego y o Oppe mann ype B (Kaza ow
1938, nos. 117, 170, 299; Oppe mann 2006, 233; nos. 499, 750–753).
e la ges concen a ions o he ho se ide elie s along he Tundzha Ri e come om
h ee illage sanc ua ies in he Kazanlak Valley, a he middle s eam o he i e (Tabako a
1959; Tabako a -Tsano a 1961; Tabako a -Tsano a 1980). e a chi ec u e o hese sanc ua -
ies did no di e om he casual dwellings o he illage; he e o e, hey we e oÞen iden i ied
11 In he con ex o epig aphical inds unde s ood as pe iod om he 1s –3 d c. AD.

127THE EPIGRAPHIC FINDS FROM YURTA-STROYNO IN AREGIONAL CONTEXT
as sanc ua ies solely on he basis o o i e o e ings. e o i e objec s ep esen ed deco a ed
s one pla es wi h he ho se ide o depic ions o o he dei ies, small e acoa s a ues, p e-
cious me al jewelle y, coins, o deco a ed mi o s. Such objec s, al hough in smalle quan i ies,
Map 1: e spa ial dis ibu ion o he ho se ide insc ip ions along he middle s eam o he Tundzha
Ri e . e ca ego y ‘Findspo s o insc ip ions’ (21 pcs.) loca es he indspo s o all insc ip ions,
e en he ones no ela ed o he mili a y. e ca ego y ‘Mili a y- ela ed insc ip ions’ (8 pcs.)
shows all insc ip ions, including mili a y diplomas, ex s published by o men ioning asoldie ,
e e an, o ape son wi h combined Roman and  acian pe sonal names, see Janoucho a (2018).
e ca ego y ‘Ho se ide monumen s’ (49 pcs.) shows indspo s o all ho se ide monumen s
along he middle Tundzha Ri e as eco ded by Oppe mann (2006).
128 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
possibly due o he dis u bance o he si e, we e also ound a Yu a - S oyno, i.e. he agmen
o he o i e e acoa pla e (Fig. 1), he b ick wi h aplausibly o i e insc ip ion (Pl. 4/2), he
en h oned e acoa dei y (Minaříko á 2022, ig. 2:2), o he ma ble head om as a uee
o abea ded male (Minaříko á 2022, ig. 1, pl. 8/1). Howe e in iguing, he exis ence o
asanc ua y in he icini y o Yu a - S oyno is only ci cums an ial and needs o be con i med
by u he in es iga ions.
I was oÞen assumed he elie depic ing aho se ide was popula amongs Roman a my
soldie s, as e idenced by i s b oad spa ial dis ibu ion and by he ex ual con en o many
insc ip ions on he ide monumen s (Dimi o a 2002, 210). Howe e , Dilyana Bo e a’squan-
i a i e analysis o ho se ide insc ip ions dedica ed by soldie s shows only a ela i ely small
numbe o ho se ide dedica ions con ain adi ec e e ence o soldie s o e e ans (Bo e a
2005, 199–204). To ex apola e Bo e a’sassump ion o all G eek insc ip ions om  ace, Iha e
compa ed he indings wi h he da ase om he Hellenisa ion o Ancien  ace da abase.12 In
Oc obe 2018, he da abase con ained a o al o 732 ho se ide elie pla es wi h p edominan ly
G eek insc ip ions. e numbe ep esen s app oxima ely one - hi d o all ho se ide elie s
ound in  ace, wi h he wo - hi ds emaining anepig aphic (based on igu es om Dimi-
o a 2002). By a ho ough s udy o he con en s o all 732 insc ip ions wi h he ho se ide
elie , we can con i m Bo e a’sassump ion ha only app oxima ely 10% o insc ip ions we e
dedica ed by someone explici ly iden i ied as asoldie (‘s a io es’), e e an, o by an indi idual
male bea ing acombined  acian and Roman name, which was adi ionally gained aÞe he
hono a y discha ge om he Roman mili a y se ice. e emaining 90% o dedica ions come
mos ly om people o unknown gende o o igin, and hei social s a us o hei a ilia ion
wi h he mili a y emains aci .
Al hough only asmall pa o insc ip ions wi h he ho se ide elie can be explici ly a -
ibu ed o mili a y pe sonnel and he p esence o ho se ide elie s is no p oo o e idence
o he mili a y cha ac e o he selemen pe se, he incidence o insc ip ions men ioning
soldie s o e e ans o he Roman a my in he middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e is con-
spicuous. Insc ip ions ei he p oduced o men ioning mili a y pe sonnel we e ound along
he middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e no only a Yu a - S oyno and Kabyle, bu also in he
egion s e ching be ween he illages Malomi o o, 50 km sou h o Kabyle; Meden Kladene s,
30 km sou heas o Kabyle; Zo ni sa, 55 km no heas o Kabyle; and T apoklo o and Lozen-
e s, 25 km no heas o Kabyle (Map 1; Janoucho a 2018, 226–227). e spa ial dis ibu ion
o insc ip ions a ilia ed wi h he Roman a my and monumen s wi h he ho se ide elie
coincides wi h wha is assumed o be he sphe e o in luence o Kabyle. e selemen a
Yu a - S oyno was mos likely loca ed on i s sou he n ou ski s, ye , acco ding o he exis ing
e idence, i was connec ed wi h Kabyle by ase ies o pe sonal, eligious, and mili a y asso-
cia ions, al eady sugges ed by Ilian Boyano (2006, 235–239).
CONCLUSION
Du ing he a chaeological in es iga ions o he selemen a Yu a - S oyno in 2014–2016, we
ound eigh new objec s wi h epig aphic alue. Fu he mo e, we we e able o e - e alua e h ee
al eady known and pa ially published objec s associa ed wi h he selemen . In he ligh
o he new inds, we we e able o eassess he na u e o epig aphic cul u e along he middle
s eam o he Tundzha Ri e and i s egional associa ions. Based on a ailable compa anda,
12 Janoucho a 2014; DOI10.17605/hps://os .io/FJNW5/.
129THE EPIGRAPHIC FINDS FROM YURTA-STROYNO IN AREGIONAL CONTEXT
mos o he epig aphic objec s da e o he Roman Impe ial Pe iod and a e o local, espec i ely
egional, o igin.  ee o he insc ip ions a e w ien in G eek, one in La in and he es is
oo agmen a y o de e mine any epig aphic language. One insc ip ion ep esen s amili a y
diploma, i e o hem dedica ions o adei y and eigh a e g a i i on poe y she ds.
e h ee insc ip ions al eady published in he li e a u e include one mili a y diploma
w ien in La in on ame al pla e and da ed o mid-2nd c. AD, g an ing an hono a y discha ge
om he Roman na y o an unknown inhabi an o Yu a - S oyno. e e - examina ion o wo
o he objec s men ioned b ie ly in he a chaeological epo s showed an in e es ing connec ion
o he new inds o 2014–2016: wo s one pla es we e ound in he icini y o Yu a - S oyno,
one depic ing ashallow elie o aho se ide and he second one as anding dei y, cha ac-
e is ic o i e o une a y monumen s o he Roman  ace (Pl. 4/1:1–2). e second pla e
con ained aG eek insc ip ion e e ing o aRoman amily name A ilius ha is epig aphically
aes ed some 34 km no h in he mili a y camp a Kabyle (Pl. 4/1:2), u he s eng hening
he egional links be ween Yu a - S oyno and Kabyle.
A agmen o as one pla e simila in size and ea men was ound by he SAP in 2015
and aÞe ca e ul examina ion showed aces o he ho se ide elie , awell - known cul u al
and eligious phenomenon o he Roman  ace ha is in some cases associa ed wi h Roman
soldie s and e e ans (Pl. 4/1:3). Howe e , he e idence linking he spa ial dis ibu ion o
ho se ide elie s and he mili a y backg ound o he inhabi an s is con i med only in asmall
ac ion o all known ho se ide insc ip ions. e e o e, he link be ween he occu ence
o he wo ho se ide elie s and he mili a y backg ound o he Yu a - S oyno selemen
inhabi an s emains ahypo hesis, ye aplausible one.
Two newly disco e ed clay objec s wi h aG eek insc ip ion imp o e ou unde s anding
o he eligious belie s o he Yu a - S oyno inhabi an s, assuming a leas basic comp ehen-
sion o he G aeco - Roman sys em o belie s. e i s one is he o i e e acoa pla e wi h
a ep esen a ion o aG aeco - Roman dei y s anding in he emple wi h aG eek dedica ion
e e ing o an o he wise unaes ed male name Py nios, Pi nios o Penios (Fig. 1). e second
insc ip ion in G eek was ound on ab ick da ed o he Roman Impe ial pe iod. e insc ibed
ex se ed as adedica ion ei he o ayoung emale o ayoung emale dei y (Pl. 4/2). Bo h
e acoa insc ip ions con i m amilia i y wi h G eek sc ip .
As o he le els o li e acy o he inhabi an s, eigh g a i i on Roman poe y we e ound
du ing he poe y p ocessing in 2015. Fou o hem consis o indi idual lee s on he boom
o side o he o iginal essel, wo incised g a i i be o e he i ing and wo aÞe he i ing o
he essel, and he o he ou pic o ial ep esen a ions o ish (Fig. 2). e size o he sample
leads o aconclusion ha some g oups o he inhabi an s we e likely able o w i e and com-
p ehend simple ex . Howe e , in gene al, he abili y o ead and w i e was no cus oma y o
he majo i y o he Classical wo ld (Ha is 1989, 327).
e close examina ion o he objec s wi h he epig aphic alue shows ha he selemen o
Yu a - S oyno was well es ablished wi hin he local socio - cul u al ne wo ks. e epig aphic
ac i i y du ing he Roman Impe ial Pe iod e eals indi ec links be ween he selemen o
Yu a - S oyno and he mili a y camp a Kabyle, sugges ing he sphe e o in luence o Kabyle
was eaching some 34 km sou h. Mo eo e , he su i ing monumen s e eal he inhabi an s
o he Yu a - S oyno selemen we e adhe ing o he G aeco - Roman sys em o belie s and
i s ela ed iconog aphy, ypical o  ace o he Roman Impe ial pe iod. e new inds show
he inhabi an s o Yu a - S oyno we e awa e, i no ac i ely pa icipa ing, in he G aeco-
-Roman cul u al phenomenon o publishing w ien messages on pe manen media such as
s one, e acoa o me al.
130 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
DIGITAL SUPPLEMENT
e digi al supplemen con aining Epidoc TEI/XML iles can be accessed online a hp://doi.o g/10.5281/
zenodo.3908271 o hps://pe i ied oices.gi hub.io/s oyno - insc ip ions/, unde he CC - BY-4.0 In e -
na ional license.
ABBREVIATIONS
AB = A chaeologia Bulga ica
AE = L’Année épig aphique; P esses Uni e si ai es de F ance. 1888–.
AOR = Археологически открития иразкопки
BCH = Bulle in de co espondance hellénique
CNT = Co pus Nummo um  aco um. Be lin - B andenbu gische Akademie de WissenschaÞen. hps://www.
co pus - nummo um.eu/ ( isi ed 4/12/2021).
IG Bulg = Mihailo , G. (1956–1997): Insc ip iones G aecae in Bulga ia epe ae, 5 ols. Academiae Lie a um
Bulga icae. So ia.
IK Byz = Łaj a , A. 2000: Die Insch iÈen on Byzan ion. Bonn.
IMS II = Miko ić, M. 1986: Insc ip ions de la Mésie Supé ieu e. Vol. 2. Viminacium e Ma gum. Belg ade.
RA = Re ue A chéologique
RIB = Vande bil , S. 2020: Roman Insc ip ions o B i ain Online: hps:// omaninsc ip ionso i ain.o g/,
isi ed 4/12/2021.
SGLIBulg = Beše lie , V. 1964: Spä g iechische und spä la einische Insch iÈen aus Bulga ien. Be lin.
SH = S udia He cynia
SEG = Supplemen um Epig aphicum G aecum. B ill. 1923–.
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Pe a Heřmánko á
Aa hus Uni e si y
Depa men o His o y and Classical S udies
Jens Ch . Skous Vej 5, DK-8000 Aa hus C
pe a.he manko [email p o ec ed].dk
133THE NUMISMATIC FINDS
The Numisma ic Finds
Pe a Heřmánko á
ABSTRACT
e ollowing ex p esen s numisma ic inds associa ed wi h he selemen o Yu a - S oyno and i s imme-
dia e icini y which we e disco e ed ei he as chance inds o du ing sys ema ic a chaeological in es iga ions
o he a ea conduc ed by he His o ical Museum o Yambol in 2006–2007 and by he Yu a - S oyno A chae-
ological P ojec in 2014–2016. F om he o al amoun o 14 indi idual coins discussed wi hin he ex , 12 coins
we e min ed in he pe iod be ween he c ea ion o he Roman p o ince o  ace in he mid-1s cen u y AD
and he decline o min ing ac i i ies in Sou h - Eas e n  ace a ound he mid-3 d c. AD. Two coins, howe e ,
p eda e he main g oup, such as he coin o Philip II da ed o he mid-4 h c. BC, and he coin o Empe o Au-
gus us, co esponding o he Empe o ’smili a y ac i i ies in he Eas e n Medi e anean du ing he 1
s
cen u y
BC.e majo i y o he coins ound in Yu a - S oyno we e min ed in he ci ies o Sou h - Eas e n  ace o in
he eas e n pa o he Aegean a ea, such as Anchialos, T aianoupolis, Philippopolis, Augus a T aiana, Philip-
pi, Cyzicus and Ephesus. Only wo coins we e min ed in he wes e n pa o he Roman Empi e, namely in
he impe ial min s in Lugdunum and in Rome. ey we e likely b ough o  ace by me chan s o soldie s.
KEYWORDS
Bulga ia; Roman  ace; Numisma ics; Roman coins; Roman p o incial coinage.
INTRODUCTION
e numisma ic inds associa ed wi h he selemen a Yu a - S oyno ep esen a ela i ely
small co pus when compa ed o nea by cen es ha we e min ing o coun e ma king hei
own coinage such as Kabyle, Deul um, Augus a T aiana o Had ianopolis. Despi e hei sca ci y,
he coins om Yu a - S oyno s ill p o ide in aluable in o ma ion abou he socio - economic
ac i i y o he a ea in he Roman impe ial pe iod and he his o y o he si e i sel .
e si e a Yu a - S oyno has been con inuously loo ed and mos o he coins o iginally
p esen a e now conside ed gone, oge he wi h hei numisma ic and a chaeological alue.
E en he su i ing coins a e oÞen ound in he seconda y con ex , as pa o a opsoil o om
obbe s’ enches. ei p esence a he si e is a he acciden al as hey we e mos likely
omied by he mode n - day loo e s o neglec ed due o hei low mone a y alue.
Se e al coins, coming ei he om he si e i sel o i s immedia e icini y, we e eco ded
in a chaeological sou ces p io o any sys ema ic exca a ion p ojec . ei desc ip ion sig-
ni ican ly a ies in de ails o hei eco ded in o ma ion. Se e al acciden al coin inds we e
b ie ly summa ised in egional si e gazeee s, such as Dimi o a and Popo (1978, 26), o
Baka dzhie (2012, 365). Pauno (2013) lis s acoin hoa d ound in he icini y o he si e and
a ew indi idual coins in his disse a ion. e sho exca a ion epo s (AOR) om he ial
exca a ion a he si e in 2006 and 2007 also b ie ly men ion numisma ic inds (Baka dzhie
2007, 238; Baka dzhie 2008, 472) o which 29 coins we e published in 2014 (Va bano 2014).
In o de o p o ide acomp ehensi e ou line o he numisma ic eco ds associa ed wi h
he selemen o Yu a - S oyno, he cu en ex summa izes he legacy da a epo ed o
he His o ical Museum o Yambol (RIM) (i.e. ou indi idual coins + one coin hoa d wi h 29
134 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
coins [Va bano 2014, 259–263]), wi h he inds disco e ed du ing he ial a chaeological
in es iga ions o he en i ons o Yu a - S oyno in 2006 and 2007 (one coin), and he coins
unco e ed wi hin he Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec (SAP) in 2014–2016 (nine coins).
Ab ie o e iew o he legacy da a is ollowed by ade ailed discussion o he new coins o
he SAP, p o iding ach onological ame o a chaeological con ex s o he cu en olume.
e concluding synopsis o he numisma ic ac i i y discusses all coin inds and examines he
selemen o Yu a - S oyno wi hin he con ex o egional mone a y ne wo ks.
NUMISMATIC FINDS FROM YURTA-STROYNO PRIOR TO SAP
e coins known p io o he beginning o SAP in 2014 we e all min ed du ing he Roman
impe ial pe iod, bo h by he impe ial and he local p o incial min s. e a chaeological si e
gazeee in Tabula Impe ii Romanii K35/2 men ions speci ically he inds om Yu a - S oyno
coming om he local min s in Anchialos, Had ianopolis, Augus a T aiana, o Philippopolis
wi h he majo i y o coins da ed o he 2nd and he 3 d c. AD (Baka dzhie 2012, 365).1
e ea lies indi idual coin ind is asil e dena o empe o Tibe ius disco e ed nea he
illage o S oyno in 1961. e coin was min ed in Lugdunum in Gallia in AD 14–37 and was
likely b ough o  ace by he membe s o he Roman a my because o i s subs an ial alue
(Pauno 2013, 697; RIM in . no 1853; coin ype RIC I2 30). In 1968 ab onze ses e ius min ed in
Rome du ing he eign o Empe o T ajan was unco e ed di ec ly a he si e o Yu a - S oyno,
da ing o AD 114–117 (Pauno 2013, 687; RIM in . no. 4325; coin ype RIC II 667). Again, his
coin o la ge alue was likely b ough om Rome by he Roman soldie s du ing he 2nd c. AD.
e coins da ed o he 3 d c. AD ep esen he mos nume ous g oup o inds, such as he
coin o empe o Maximinus  ax, min ed be ween AD 235–238, and he coin o Empe o
Go dian III, min ed in AD 238–244, bo h epo ed by he gazeee o a chaeological si es in
he Yambol Dis ic (Dimi o a– Popo 1978, 26).2 Mo eo e , he gazeee men ions ahoa d
o 29 sil e dena ii and an oniniani (Dimi o a– Popo 1978, 26; Baka dzhie 2012, 365; RIM
in . no. 210; Va bano 2014). e hoa d con ained 13 dena ii min ed in be ween AD 196–239
and 16 an oniniani min ed in be ween AD 238–248, wi h 28 coins min ed in Rome and one in
Laodicea in Asia Mino . e hoa d was possibly bu ied a he ime o in asion o Go hs o
Sou h - Eas e n  ace in AD 250–251 (Va bano 2014, 257).
e ial exca a ions conduc ed by RIM in 2006 and 2007 eco ded asil e an oninianus
min ed by Empe o Gallienus in AD 253–260 (Baka dzhie 2007, 238; Baka dzhie 2008,
472) which cu en ly ep esen s he younges su i ing coin ound on he si e.
In addi ion o he coins associa ed wi h he selemen o Yu a - S oyno, ahoa d o 195
sil e coins was ound in 1961 a he place called S . Iliya, loca ed abou 1.5 km sou h eas o
Yu a - S oyno (IGCH 924) ound in he icini y o he newly exca a ed complex wi h a holos
emple-like s uc u e, da ed o 1s –3 d c. AD (Ag e – Diche – H is o 2020). e e minus
an e quem o he hoa d was de e mined 81/80 BC (Schöne - Geiss 1987, 105–106; Pauno
2013, 727).3 e disco e y con i ms he hin e land o Yu a - S oyno was undeniably econom-
1 Un o una ely, he sou ce does no p o ide any u he de ails no he o al coun s o coins.
2Dimi o a and Popo (1978, 26) men ion h ee coins in o al, one o Maximinus, one o Go dian and
one uniden i ied.
3 e hoa d con ained 126 e ad achms o asos and i s imi a ions, 62 e ad achms o Ma oneia,
ou e ad achms o he New S yle om A hens, wo Macedonian e ad achms o Fi s Region
and one e ad achm o Aesillas, all coins a e now deposi ed in RIM Yambol.
135THE NUMISMATIC FINDS
ically ac i e al eady du ing he i s decades o he 1s c. BC and associa ed wi h he mone a y
ne wo ks o he Eas e n Medi e anean.
OVERVIEW OF INDIVIDUAL COINS FOUND WITHIN SAP DURING 2014–2016
e new coins ound du ing he Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec ep esen asmall co pus
o nine b onze coins, eigh o hem ound wi hin he a chaeological exca a ion in 2014–2016
and one du ing he su ace su ey o he si e in 2016 (nos. 1–9; see Tab.1, Pl. 5/1).
Tab.1: Lis o coins ound a Yu a-S oyno in 2014–2016; d. = diame e .
Fi e coins we e ound no h o he house in an a ea ha seems o se e as acou ya d, see
Map 1. e a ea was co e ed by he so - called le elling laye , con empo a y o la e wi h he
building phase o he house da ed aÞe AD 220’s, which migh ha e se ed as ele a ion and/
o d ainage o he cou ya d. e laye is abou 40 cm hick, loca ed below ca. 50–60 cm o
opsoil (see Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2022).  ee o he coins we e disco e ed
ela i ely close oge he in he opsoil; hey we e da ed o he 4
h
c. BC (Pl. 5/1:1), o he 1
s
c.BC (Pl. 5/1:2) and o he 1s c. AD (Pl. 5/1:4), sugges ing he seconda y deposi ion o he soil
as ch onologically younge coins we e ound in he lowe le els.
Two o he coins we e ound in he le elling laye o he squa e 105E_105N NW, loca ed
oughly om 50–60 o 90 cm below he su ace. e coins we e da ed o he second hal o
he 2nd c. AD (Pl. 5/1:5) and o he i s decades o he 3 d c. AD (Pl. 5/1:7).
Two coins we e ound inside o he house, p esumably in closed con ex s, including he
coin o Diadoumenian (Pl. 5/1:8), which was placed di ec ly in he ench o he ounda ion
wall [SU036], da ing he building o he house o ape iod aÞe AD 218. Coin o Ioulia Domna
(Pl. 5/1:6), da ed o AD 193–217, was ound in adeep pi - like deposi [SU057] loca ed in he
no h - eas e n co ne o RoomC.
One mo e coin (Pl. 5/1:3) was ound du ing he exca a ion, placed in a obbe ’ssoil [SU001]
in he squa e 100E_100N S. I migh be da ed o he i s decades o he 2nd c. AD, bu i s o ig-
inal con ex is los .
No. SF # SU T ench /
Polygon Sec . Min Depic ion Ch onology D.
(mm)
Weigh
(g.)
1SF14_157 SU_023 100E_105N SE ×Philip II ca. 350–300 BC 15 ca. 5
2SF14_200 SU_027 90E_105N SE Ephesus / Pe gamon Augus us 27–23 BC 30 ca. 10
3SF14_016 SU_001 100E_100N ×Philippi (Augus us?)
T ajan (27 BC?) AD 98–117 19 ca. 5
4SF15_069 SU_033 95E_105N SE ×Fla ian
dynas y AD 81–96 18 3
5SF16_185 FA09 105E_105N NW (Bizye? / Augus a
T aiana?)
(Ma cus
Au elius?) (AD 161–180) 20 3
6SF15_272 SU_057 100E_105N SE Anchialos Ioulia Domna AD 193–217 23 7
7SF16_143 FA06 105E_105N NW T aianoupolis Ca acalla AD 211–217 22 5
8SF15_058 SU_036 100E_105N NCyzicus Diadumenian May AD 217–June AD
218 22 5
9F13_SE_12 Su ey F13 SE Anchialos T anquillina AD 241–244 18 2
142 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Conside ing all he coins associa ed wi h he si e, he economic ac i i ies o he i s wo
cen u ies AD a e ep esen ed by indi idual coins only, whe eas he e is an inc ease in he
numbe s o coins p esen a he si e du ing he 3 d c. AD, ea u ing indi idual coins as well as
one coin hoa d. e g ow h o he numbe o coins in la e cen u ies may be acciden al due
o he na u e o hei disco e y, bu i likely also co esponds wi h he change in he min ing
ac i i ies in he a ea. e coins om he 1s c. BC and he 1s c. AD we e min ed ou side  ace,
ei he in he ci ies o he No he n Aegean o in Asia Mino and we e b ough o  ace
ei he by soldie s o me chan s. e coins om he 2nd and he 3 d c. AD we e mos ly min ed
in he local p o incial min s in  ace, co esponding wi h he de elopmen o he poli ical
o ganisa ion, he exis ence o p o incial adminis a ion and he es ablishmen o p o incial
min ing in  ace.
e mos impo an numisma ic ind, in e ms o he ch onology and ou unde s anding
o he selemen de elopmen , ep esen s he coin o Empe o Diadoumenian (Pl. 5/1:8)
ha da es he building phase o he house o AD 218 o aÞe . e coin was min ed in Cyzicus
be ween May AD 217 and June AD 218 and did no s ay in ci cula ion o long. e e o e, we
may assume he deposi ion o he coin in o he wall ounda ion ench in he yea s ollowing
Diadoumenian’sdea h in la e June AD 218.
e discon inua ion o p o incial min ing aÞe AD 250 may ha e esul ed in he dec eased
ci cula ion o coins and subsequen ly hei absence om he si e, as well as i may e lec he
end o economic ac i i y a he si e aÞe he second hal o he hi d cen u y AD in eac ion
o he inc eased socie al p essu e.
ABBREVIATIONS
AOR = Археологически открития иразкопки
BMC = W o h, W. 1892: Mysia. Ca alogue o G eek Coins in he B i ish Museum 14. Ox o d.
CNT = Co pus Nummo um  aco um, Be lin - B andenbu gische Akademie de WissenschaÞen, a ailable
a hps://www.co pus - nummo um.eu/, ( isi ed 21/10/2021).
Cohen = Cohen, H. 1880: Desc ip ion his o ique des monnaies appées sous l’Empi e RomainI. Pa is– Lond es.
Gia d = Gia d, J.-B. 2001: Monnaies de l’Empi e Romain, IAugus e. Pa is.
IGCH = Thompson, M.– Noe, S.P.– K aay, C.M.– Mø kholm, O. 1973: An In en o y o G eek Coin Hoa ds.
New Yo k.
Mionne = Mionne , T.E. 1806: Desc ip ion de médailles an iques, g ecques e omaines; a ec leu deg é de a e é
e leu es ima ion; ou age se an de ca alogue à une sui e de plus de ing mille emp ein es en sou e, p ise su
les pièces o iginales. Pa is.
Moushmo = Мушмов, Н. 1912: Античните монети на Балканския полуостров имонетите на българските
царе. София.
RIC = Ma ingly, H.– Sydenham, E.A.– Su he land, C.H.V.– Ca son, R.A.G. 1926: e Roman Impe ial
Coinage. London.
RPC = Bu ne , A.M.– Amand y, M.– Pau Ripollès, P.– Ca adice, I. 1992: Roman P o incial Coinage 1:1.
London– Pa is.
RSC = Seaby, H.A.– Sea , D.R.1952: Roman Sil e Coins. London.
SH = S udia He cynia
SNG ANS = Waggone , N. 1987: Sylloge Nummo um G aeco um: e Collec ion o he Ame ican Numisma ic
Socie y, P . 7. Macedonia I: Ci ies,  ace-Macedonian T ibes, Paeonian Kings. New Yo k.

143THE NUMISMATIC FINDS
SNG Cop = K omann, A.– Mø kholm, O. 1982: Sylloge Nummo um G aeco um. e Royal Collec ion o Coins
and Medals, Danish Na ional Museum 2:  ace. Copenhagen.
SNG Tübingen = Mannspe ge , D. 1989: Sylloge Nummo um G aeco um. Deu schland. Münzsammlung de
Uni e si ä Tübingen 4: Mysien-Ionien. Munich.
Va bano = Va bano , I. 2007: G eek Impe ial Coins 3:  ace ( om Pe in hus o T ajanopolis), Che sonesos
 aciae, Insula  aciae, Macedonia. Bou gas.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Eu opius B e ia ium = Fla ius Eu opius: B e ia ium ab u be condi a cum e sionibus G aecis e Pauli Landol -
ique addi amen is. Monumen a Ge maniae His o ica. Auc o um an iquissimo um 2. T ansl. H. D oysen.
Be lin 1961.
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в м. св. Илия в землището на с. Стройно, общ. Елхово. АОR през 2020 г., 875–880.
Baka dzhie 2007 = Бакърджиев, С. 2007: Сондажни археологически проучвания вЮрта край село
Стройно, община Елхово. AOR през 2006 г., 238–241.
Baka dzhie 2008 = Бакърджиев, С. 2008: Сондажни археологически проучвания вЮрта край село
Стройно, община Елхово. AOR през 2007 г., 471–473.
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Bu ell, B. 2004: Neoko oi: G eek Ci ies and Roman Empe o s. Leiden - Bos on.
Clay, C.L. 1979: e Roman Coinage o Mac inus and Diadumenian. Numisma ische Zei sch iÈ 93, 21–40.
Dimi o a– Popo 1978 = Димитрова, Д.– Попов, Ж. 1978: Археологически паметници вЯмболски окръг.
София.
Dimi o 1982 = Димитров, К. 1982: Антични иранновизантийски монети от Кабиле, базилика no 1.
In: Т. Иванов (ed.): Кабиле 1. София, 158–165.
Hadzhie a 2018 = Хаджиева, Н. 2018: Бронзови монети на Филип ІІ (359–336 г. пр. хр.) иАлександър ІІІ
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19, 33–42.
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Ju uko a, J. 1981: Die Münzp ägung on Bizye. Be lin.
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Хадрианопол. София.
La son, J. 2001: G eek Nymphs: My h, Cul , Lo e. New Yo k.
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 ace. Malden– Ox o d– Chiches e , 75–90.
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144 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
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Hills.
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o á– S. Baka dzhie (eds.): e Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec . S udies on he Roman Ru al SeÄlemen
in  ace. SH Monog aphs 2. P aha, 24–52.
Va bano 2014 = Върбанов, В. 2014: Находки от римски монети (ІІІ. век) от фонда на Регионален
исторически музей– Ямбол. Проблеми иизследвания на тракийската култура 7, 254–284.
Pe a Heřmánko á
Aa hus Uni e si y
Depa men o His o y and Classical S udies
Jens Ch . Skous Vej 5, 8000 Aa hus C, Denma k
pe a.he manko [email p o ec ed].dk
145THE TERRACOTTA LAMPS
The Te aco a Lamps
Robe F ece
ABSTRACT
A o al o 130 e acoa lamps, all bu one in agmen a y s a e, we e ound du ing he h ee - yea p ojec
a he Roman selemen o Yu a - S oyno. e p ocessed agmen s we e e ie ed om he a ea o he
exca a ed house, om he so - called le elling laye , as well as om he su ace su ey. Mos lamps came
om he le elling laye no h o he house, while se e al belong o s a i ied con ex s wi hin he house–
p ima ily om ills o he di ches in Room B [SU021] and Room C [SU008]. Only 31 o all agmen s, howe e ,
a e diagnos ic enough o be assigned o aspeci ic ype.
Fi e lamps o B onee ype XXVII a e he mos s iking. Two o hese, including an excellen bus o
A hena in a mou , may ha e been impo s om aG eek wo kshop o he la e 3
d
– ea ly 4
h
cen u y AD,
while h ee lamps likely s em om wo kshops ope a ing nea Pa likeni in no he n Bulga ia. Nine ib-
-shoulde ed lamps o Iconomu ype XXX/B onee XXIX we e scae ed ac oss se e al con ex s.  ee unique
local  acian imi a ions o Loeschcke ype IV/V olu e lamps come om asingle s a i ied con ex [SU021]
dug in Room B. Eigh a ia ions on Loeschcke ype VIII koiné lamps we e ound, including he only whole
lamp om he co pus and ano he wi h an incised swas ika on i s base.  ee bae ed agmen s may ha e
been Fi malampen. Finally, amould - made e acoa piece ound uns a i ied may ha e been ap oduc ion
was e o pa o alamps and.
e lamps om Yu a - S oyno can be oughly da ed o ape iod s e ching om he 3 d o ea ly 4 h cen u y
AD, yielding amix u e o local wa e,  acian p oduc ion, and wo clea impo s pe haps om A hens which
aes o he ade connec ions o he selemen wi h he Aegean a ea.
KEYWORDS
Bulga ia;  ace; Roman pe iod; e acoa lamps; u al selemen ; B onee ype XXVII.
LAMPS FROM THE EXCAVATION
Eigh y - ou lamps o lamp agmen s he eo we e eco e ed du ing he exca a ion seasons
2014–2016 o he si e Yu a - S oyno p ope , o hese, 30 may be iden i ied wi h a ying con i-
dence (Tab.1:1–28, 36–37). O e all, 13 o hem had pa ially in ac disci, 33 shoulde s, 15 handles,
21 nozzles and 15 bases. ese numbe s may o e lap, as lamp agmen s include a ious pa s.
FiÞeen agmen s we e conside ed en i ely non - diagnos ic as hey could only be iden i ied
as lamps based on i ing, clay s uc u e and he p esence o mould - made ma kings. Asingle
lamp (Pl. 6/2:20) was disco e ed comple e.
SPATIAL AND STRATIGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION
Twen y - se en agmen s may be said o ha e been ound inside he house. O hese, 16 we e
om he easu e hun e s RT soil [SU001], and 11 come om s a ig aphic uni s. Rooms B
and C had signi ican clus e s o 12 lamps each, while Rooms D and E con ained only apai
each, espec i ely. O no e a e h ee agmen s om he con ex [SU008], a ill o a ench
dug in he sou hwes co ne o RoomC. One o hese is a a ia ion o Loeschcke ype VIII/
146 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
B onee ype XXIX (Pl. 6/2:21), ano he wi h an angula nozzle in he s yle o Loeschcke I
(Pl. 6/3:27).
Fou agmen s came om [SU021] a ench dug nea he eas wall o Room B. ese include
h ee Loeschcke IV/Vimi a ions (Pl. 6/1:6–8) and one B onee ype XXVII, G oup B o Vine-
-and - Ray lamp (Pl. 6/1:1). Ano he B onee ype XXVII, G oup C o O ule - and - Panel lamp was
ound inco po a ed in o a loo le el ([SU063]) in he sou heas co ne o Room D (Pl. 6/1:5).
In con as , 57 agmen s we e ound ou side he house– mos ly no h o he s uc u e– as
his a ea was mo e in ensely exca a ed and no dis u bed by easu e hun e s. i een ag-
men s may again be discoun ed as coming om he uns a i ied RT soil [SU001] (see Tab.1).
An impo an s a i ied clus e was eco e ed om he le elling laye . is clus e consis s
o 42 lamps, o which ele en can be iden i ied: nine agmen s o Iconomu ype XXX/B onee
ype XXIX (Pl. 6/1:9–10, Pl. 6/2:11–17); B onee ype XXVII, G oup C lamp (Pl. 6/1:3) and one
mo e B onee ype XXVII, G oup C o O ule - and - Panel lamp (Pl. 6/1:4) da ed o AD 300–325.
e ying p esence o iden ical lamp ypes ac oss he a ea no h o he house, ound in
di e en enches and laye s, con i ms his was o iginally one laye c ea ed by homogenous
ma e ial sp ead in sho ime. is conclusion is also suppo ed by he cha ac e o o he
ma e ial e ie ed om he le elling laye ( o he poe y see Tušlo á 2022; o he glass
Čisťako a– Zlámalo á Cílo á 2022; o he bones Ný l o á Fišáko á 2022).
No. SF # SU T ench /
Polygon Sec . SU
speci ica ion
Lamp classi ica ion /
Type
Ch onology (AD)
Lowe
ange
Uppe
ange
1SF14_130 SU021 95E_100N SE ill o a di ch B onee XXVII, G oup B
(Vine-and-Ray) 275 325
2SF14_011 SU001 100E_100N ×RT soil B onee XXVII, G oup C
(O ule-and-Panel) 200 350
3SF14_073 SU010 90E_105N NE le elling laye B onee XXVII, G oup C
(O ule-and-Panel) 200 350
4SF15_114 SU047 100E_105N NE le elling laye B onee XXVII, G oup C
(O ule-and-Panel) 300 325
5SF15_324 SU063 105E_100N NE loo le el B onee XXVII, G oup C
(O ule-and-Panel) 200 350
6SF14_131 SU021 95E_100N SE ill o a di ch Loeschcke IV/V imi a ion 100 ×
7SF14_132 SU021 95E_100N SE ill o a di ch Loeschcke IV/V imi a ion 100 ×
8SF14_140 SU021 95E_100N SE ill o a di ch Loeschcke IV/V imi a ion 100 ×
9SF14_072 SU010 90E_105N NE le elling laye Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
10 SF14_084 SU016 95E_105N NW le elling laye Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
11 SF14_107 SU016 95E_105N NW le elling laye Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
12 SF14_210 SU033 100E_105N SE le elling laye Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
13 SF15_145 SU052 100E_105N NE le elling laye Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
14 SF15_168 SU052 100E_105N NE le elling laye Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
147THE TERRACOTTA LAMPS
No. SF # SU T ench /
Polygon Sec . SU
speci ica ion
Lamp classi ica ion /
Type
Ch onology (AD)
Lowe
ange
Uppe
ange
15 SF15_219 SU001 95E_100N ×RT soil Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
16 SF16_130 SU078 100E_110N SE le elling laye Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
17 SF16_211 SU084 100E_110N SE le elling laye Iconomu ype XXX /
B onee ype XXIX 200 600
18 SF14_007 SU001 100E_100N ×RT soil Loeschcke VIII 100 ×
19 SF14_009 SU001 100E_100N ×RT soil Loeschcke VIII 100 ×
20 SF14_090 SU021 95E_100N SE ill o a di ch Loeschcke VIII 100 ×
21 SF14_207 SU008 100E_100N SW ill o a di ch Loeschcke VIII 100 ×
22 SF14_224 SU001 125E_100N ×RT Loeschcke VIII 100 ×
23 SF15_008 SU015 95E_105N NE opsoil Loeschcke VIII 100 ×
24 SF15_024 SU001 90E_110N SE RT soil Loeschcke VIII 100 ×
25 SF16_100 SU078 100E_110N SE/SW le elling laye Loeschcke VIII 100 ×
26 SF15_183 SU001 95E_100N ×RT soil po en ial Bildlampen
(Loeschcke ypes I–IV) 100 ?
27 SF14_180 SU001 90E_100N NE RT soil po en ial Bildlampen
(Loeschcke ypes I–IV) 100 ×
28 SF14_181 SU008 100E_100N SW ill o a di ch po en ial Bildlampen
(Loeschcke ypes I–IV) 100 ×
29 SF14_031 SU001 100E_100N ×RT soil uniden i ied × ×
30 SF14_082 SU010 90E_105N NE le elling laye lamps and? × ×
31 SF16_D13_
NW_39 ×D13 NW su ey po en ial Bildlampen
(Loeschcke ype I–V?) 100 ×
32 SF16_H13_
SW_02 ×H13 SW su ey po en ial Bildlampen
(Loeschcke ype I–V?) 100 ×
33 SF16_F13_
SE_07 ×F13 SE su ey uniden i ied × ×
34 SF16_H14_
NE_01 ×H14 NE su ey uniden i ied × ×
35 SF16_J13_
SE_02 ×J13 SW su ey uniden i ied × ×
36 SF14_010 SU001 100E_100N ×RT soil Fi malampen? 100 ×
37 SF14_035 SU001 100E_100N ×RT soil Fi malampen? 100 ×
Tab.1: O e iew o he p esen ed e acoa lamps wi h indica ed ch onological li espan o hei
p oduc ion i possible.

148 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
BRONEER TYPE XXVII
Fi e lamps o B onee ype XXVII da ed om he 3 d o ea ly 4 h cen u y AD desc ibed below a e
he mos s iking lamps om Yu a - S oyno (Pl. 6/1:1–5; Tab.1:1–5). ey belong o B onee
ype XXVII (in Osca B onee ’s ypology) and appea ed as adis inc unslipped ype in Co in h
in he ea ly decades o he 2nd cen u y AD (B onee 1930, 85, 96; B onee 1977, 64), inspi ed
by he koiné lamps o he Roman Medi e anean known as Loeschcke ype VIII (Pe lzweig
1961, 7) ia he p oduc ion cen es o A ica P oconsula is (Deneau e 1969, pl. LXXX–LXXXI,
ca . no. 878–898; known as Deneau e ype VII - C).
B onee ype XXVII, G oup B
B onee ype XXVII is di ided in o h ee sub - g oups based on he dominan deco a i e el-
emen . G oup B o his ype is known as ‘Vine - and - Ray’ by he ypical al e na ing shoulde
mo i . No long aÞe he s a o Co in hian p oduc ion, A hens began manu ac u ing i s
own lamps in his s yle, and hei ou pu soon came o su pass Co in h in bo h quan i y and
quali y (Pe lzweig 1961, 57, 94, ca . no. 271–274, signed Sposianou and Kallis ou). e A henian
p oduc ion, wi h ine elie and p obably in luenced by me alwo k (Pe lzweig 1961, 18), was
once hough o ha e been ended by he He ulean in asion in AD 267 bu is now known o ha e
con inued un il abou AD 350 (Bailey 1988, 406–408) while Co in hian p oduc ion pe sis ed
un il a leas he mid-5 h cen u y AD (Ga ne 1975, 190, ca . nos. 5–6).
Ou only lamp o his sub ype (Pl. 6/1:1) has g ape bunches and ine lea es in ci cles
connec ed wi h spi als in he ypical A henian ‘blu ed elie ’ s yle. I s bes analogies a e
ou lamps om he A henian Ago a (Pe lzweig 1961, 145, ca . no. 1470–1473), wo o hem
signed Κλάρο|υ and Πρείμο|υ, espec i ely, and da ed o a ound AD 300 by Judi h Pe lzweig.
ese a e he only known analogies o ou lamp, wi h co esponding shoulde o ms and he
ine/g ape mo i s in asinusoid spi al; asimila lamp om he RGZM in Mainz has nei he
p o enience no p o enance, and i is simply da ed o ‘La e An iqui y’ (Menzel 1954, ca . no.
540, Abb. 47:5). Based on wha we know o A henian lamp shoulde deco a ion (Pe lzweig
1961, ca . nos. 646, 707, 714, 726, 750, 757, 777, 784, 805, 908, 924, 1017, 1022), we can con iden ly
a ibu e his lamp o he la e 3
d
cen u y o ea ly 4
h
cen u y AD A henian wo kshop p oducing
in aCo in hianizing s yle.
B onee ype XXVII, G oup C
G oup C is da ed much he same as G oup B, ha ing been p oduced in he 3 d and ea ly 4 h
cen u y AD. e lamps ha e symme ical lugs, ixed up like locks, on each side o acen al
deco a ion panel. ei shoulde s bea acha ac e is ic ‘O ule - and - Panel’ deco a ion and
hese lamps we e called “ he pe ec ion o lampmaking in G eece du ing Roman Impe ial
imes” (B onee 1977, 66) due o hei high le el o c aÞsmanship. Wi h A hens being he
p ima y p oduc ion cen e, hese a e no longe simply Co in hianizing bu o iginal A he-
nian p oduc s.
Fou lamps om Yu a - S oyno can be ma ched o his ype (Pl. 6/1:2–5). e i s h ee
a e mino shoulde and discus agmen s showing he lowing cha ac e is ic, O ule - and - Panel
mo i . e lae o he ou dese es aleng hie discussion due o i s s unning discus mo i .
is excep ional discus agmen wi h abus o A hena in ull a mou was ound in he
le elling laye no h om he house in ench 100E_105N (Pl. 6/1:4). I s ligh yellowish - b own
clay (10YR 6/4) wi hou any slip makes i s and ou om all o he lamps ound a Yu a - S oyno.
149THE TERRACOTTA LAMPS
Ase ies o iden ical lamps (pe haps om he same mould as he one om Yu a - S oyno!)
om he A henian Ago a (Pe lzweig 1961, ca . no. 653–655, pls. 12, 15, and 36) a e he bes
analogies o ou lamp. Howe e , wo simila discus agmen s published om Augus a T aiana
(S a a Zago a) we e unco e ed nea akiln and a e hypo hesized by Ma ia Kamishe a - I ano a
o ha e been p oduced in ha cen e (Kamishe a 2010, 245, обр. 2 A - b). ese a e co e ed by
eddish slip, no p esen on ou agmen .
e wo dis inc analogies can be combined in h ee possible in e p e a ions:
a) ou lamp, based on he clea ma ch om he A henian Ago a, was p oduced in A hens
and b ough o Yu a - S oyno by ade o as ape sonal i em. e agmen s om S a a Zago a
a e mis - iden i ied as local p oduc s bu a e in ac impo s om he same A henian ba ch;
b) ou lamp, along wi h he wo agmen s om S a a Zago a, was p oduced locally om
amould aken di ec ly o an o iginal A henian lamp;
c) ou lamp was in ac made in A hens, based on i s c isp elie , di e ence in clay om
he es o he lamps om Yu a - S oyno, and lack o eddish slip compa ed o he analogies
om S a a Zago a. e wo agmen s om S a a Zago a we e p oduced locally using moulds
aken o o o iginal A henian lamps (simila o ou s).
Wi hou conclusi e chemical analysis o he clay om all lamps in his equa ion (A hens,
Yu a - S oyno, and S a a Zago a), we canno be su e which o hese in e p e a ions is co ec .
Howe e , each heo y i sel pain s an in e es ing pic u e o he ade connec ions o Yu a-
-S oyno ci ca AD 300.
B onee ype XXVII p oduc ion and imi a ion
A henian lamps o B onee ype XXVII we e widely expo ed ac oss he Roman p o inces, bu
hey we e also subjec o local imi a ions. A henian expo is known om Dalma ian Nicopolis
o Epi us Ve us (Busuladžić 2007, ca . no. 62), No ican Lau iacum (De inge 1965, 116–117, ca .
no. 349), Aquileia in I aly (di Filippo Bales azzi 1988, 403–404; ca . nos. 1113–1117), Panno-
nian In e cisa and A abona (I ányi 1935, 98, ca . nos. 873–874) o o he places in G eece and
Asia Mino (B uneau 1965, ca . nos. 4658–4659; B onee 1977, 65). In ligh o his e idence,
ou conjec u ed A henian o iginals (G oup B: Pl. 6/1:1; and G oup C: Pl. 6/1:4) may also ha e
been expo ed om A hens in his manne .
B onee ype XXVII lamps we e also imi a ed by c aÞsmen elsewhe e in he Roman p o -
inces. G oup B was manu ac u ed in Dje ba, Tunisia (Zeischka 1997, ca . no. 182); G oup C
and D imi a ed in No iodunum (Baumann 2009, 247–249; ype XI, ca no. 99–109– wi h 13
i ems da ed o he 3 d cen u y AD). An in e es ing and ea ly a ia ion was ound in Cnidus
(Bailey 1988, 341–342, Q 2735, Q 2737, 344, Q 2760). Bu pe haps closes o home a e he  acian
p oduc ion cen es o Pa likeni and Bu o o which p oduced lamps in B onee ype XXVII
s ikingly simila o hose ound a Yu a - S oyno da ed o he 3 d cen u y AD (Sul o a 1991,
116, 122–123, обр. 7–13;Vladko a 2011, 124, ca . no. 18).  ee o ou lamps a ibu ed o G oupC
(Pl. 6/1:2–3, 5) om Yu a - S oyno, while simila o ue Co in hian G oup B wa es (such as
B onee 1977, 75, ca . no. 2974), a e p obably local imi a ions o his kind.
UNIQUE IMITATIONS OF LOESCHCKE TYPE IV/VBILDLAMPEN
 ee lamps (Pl. 6/1:6–8; Tab.1:6–8) ound oge he in he sou h - eas e n quad an o he
ench 95E_100N ([SU021]) in Room B a e in e es ing imi a ions o Loeschcke ype IV/VBild-
lampen. Uncha ac e is ically o he ype, hei clay is ligh b ownish g ey (Munsell 2.5Y 6/2)
and hey a e co e ed in aces o ada k g ey slip (Munsell 5Y 4/1). ei olu e is me ely sug-
150 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
ges ed by an incised line, wi h a elie ing a ound he discus in he manne o Fi malampen,
and wi h ap ominen elie hal - ci cle on he nozzle. Al hough lamps o Loeschcke ypes I o
Vwe e p oduced in I aly om he Augus an Age o abou AD 100, plen y o p o incial imi a-
ions exis – e en wi h simila incised olu es, no less (Baumann 2009, 230, ca . no. 29), o
inco po a ing asimila elie ing on he discus (Goe he - Polaschek 1985, Ta . 76). As he
lamps o his special ype om Yu a - S oyno a e signi ican ly de i a i e om he o iginal
Loeschcke ypes IV/V, hey mus be da ed o he 2nd cen u y AD a he ea lies .
ICONOMU TYPE XXX/BRONEER TYPE XXIX
Ag oup o nine lamp agmen s wi h a ying clay s uc u e bu uni ed by elie ays on hei
ounded shoulde s can be soundly bundled oge he as ag oup (Pl. 6/1:9–10, Pl. 6/2:11–17;
Tab.1:9–17). All bu one o hese agmen s we e ound in he le elling laye , he one was
e ie ed om RT soil [SU001]. ey bes ecall Dalma ian and  acian local a ia ions on
Loeschcke ype VIII ound lamps. Examples o hese may be ound in Zag eb (Vikić - Belančić
1971, 162, ca . no. 238), No iodunum (Baumann 2009, 254, ig. 14, ca . no. 122), Che sonesus,
whe e hey a e e med “ ibbed” lamps (Klenina– Bie nacki 2015, 271–272), and in Bu o o
and Pa likeni (Sul o a 1991, 117, 123, обр. 14–16, 24; Vladko a 2011, 126, ca . no. 30). ese
c ude and a e lamps ha e an unce ain da e ange; usually hey a e a ibu ed o he 3 d and
4 h cen u y AD.
AÞe he 2nd cen u y AD, he Loeschcke ype VIII koiné lamp o he Medi e anean is mo e
o an umb ella e m o a ious ound shaped lamps ha we e widely dis ibu ed and copied
han aspeci ic ype i sel . e exis ence o hese “ ibbed” a ia ions on he ype should he e-
o e come as no su p ise. Al e na i ely, he ays on he shoulde ecall Iconomu ype XXX la e
Danube/Balkan lamps made as la e as he 6 h cen u y AD, which we e in u n a a ia ion on
No h A ican lamp p oduc ion (Cu a 2016, 75–81). As he da ing o his ype p oposed by
analogies is unclea ( om he 3 d o he 6 h cen u y AD), hey canno be used o da e s a i-
g aphic con ex s a Yu a - S oyno.
OTHER VARIATIONS ON LOESCHCKE TYPE VIII LAMPS
Adissonan g oup o Loeschcke ype VIII ound lamps– a e y b oad ype in i sel – comple e
he se ies wi h eigh lamps ound in mixed con ex s, bu mos ly in he RT soil [SU001] (Pl.
6/2:18–25; Tab.1:18–25). ese ha dy lamps we e he common wa e o he Roman Eas , and
i is no su p ise o ind hem locally p oduced in  ace as well.  ee o ou inds migh be
a ibu ed o speci ic con ex : ashoulde and discus agmen (Pl. 6/2:21) comes om he
ench [SU008] in Room C; ashoulde and handle agmen wi h ap ominen globule (Pl.
6/2:25) was ound in he le elling laye no h o he house; and he ound and wo n slipped
lamp (Pl. 6/2:20), which has he dis inc ion o being he only comple e lamp om Yu a-
-S oyno, comes om he ill o he di ch [SU021]. e las one has discus deco a ed by 8–10
pe als a ound he cen al oil illing hole.
POTENTIAL BILDLAMPEN (LOESCHCKE TYPES I–V)
 ee agmen s ha e he limi ed po en ial o be Bildlampen (Pl. 6/3:26–28; Tab.1:26–28).
One discus agmen (Pl. 6/3:26) has ashoulde g oo e ypical o la e Bildlampen p oduced
om he 2nd cen u y AD, al hough, in he Roman p o inces, an uppe da e canno be speci ied.
Two agmen s (Pl. 6/3:27– 28) po en ially ha e angula nozzles ypical o Loeschcke ype
151THE TERRACOTTA LAMPS
Ilamps bu canno be conclusi ely iden i ied. Nei he o hese is su icien ly p ese ed as o
allow de ini e a ibu ion.
PRODUCER STAMPS, WORKSHOP MARKS, AND AWASTER
Almos no p oduce s amps o wo kshop ma ks su i e on lamps om Yu a - S oyno; howe e ,
aLoeschcke ype VIII lamp (Pl. 6/2:24) is ap ominen excep ion wi h an incised swas ika on
i s base. Un o una ely, like ano he lamp (Pl. 6/3:29) wi h adeco a ion o incised ays on
i s base, i was ound in RT soil [SU001] con amina ed by mode n loo ing ac i i ies. e wo
possible base agmen s o Fi malampen (Pl. 6/3:36–37) may show ain signs o i m ma ks;
bo h a e beyond ecogni ion.
An in e es ing ce amic agmen ound in he le elling laye (Pl. 6/3:30) may no belong
o alamp a all, bu ce ainly bea s all he signs o being mould - made wi h inge smea s on
he inside su ace, and small elie globules on he ou side (indica ing ha aplas e o m was
used o make i ). I is i egula , de o med and wi h asandwich i ing s uc u e, and could be
in e p e ed ei he as ace amic lamps and o awas e . Since he e is no eason o was e s o
ha e a elled e y a om hei poin o o igin, i his a ibu ion is ue, i would indica e
ace amics wo kshop loca ed on o e y nea by he selemen o Yu a - S oyno.
LAMPS FROM THE SURFACE SURVEY
Al oge he 46 agmen s we e eco e ed om he su ace su ey. Mos agmen s we e
nondesc ip walls o shoulde joins which a e as ong poin o alamp’sha diness, oÞen
p ese ed, bu wi h lile diagnos ic alue. Nine disci, en handles, i e nozzles and i e bases
we e eco e ed. Lamp inds om he su ey a ea would appea o be clus e ed o he no h-
-no heas o he p esumed ex en o he selemen co e, especially in squa es D13, F13, H13
(see Weisso á – Tušlo á– Baka zdhie 2022, map 3).
LOESCHCKE TYPES I–V
Despi e hei miniscule size, wo agmen s (Pl. 6/3:31–32; Tab.1:31–32) may ha e belonged
o olu e lamps o Loeschcke ypes I–V. e o me is dis inguished by i s ine o ange clay and
h ee g oo es which aguely ecall aFo m I/IIa shoulde ype ound on ea ly Loeschcke ype
Ia lamps (c. . Loeschcke 1919, 28, Abb. 2). e la es imi a ions o his sub ype we e p oduced
a he end o he 1
s
cen u y AD in Rae ia (Leibundgu 1977, 22–23) bu un o una ely he
agmen is oo bae ed o de ini ely assign i o Loeschcke ype Ia o o iden i y i wi h o he
ypes. e lae agmen shows signs o a olu e nea he angula nozzle o an unspeci ied
olu e lamp– ei he o Loeschcke ypes I–Vo an imi a ion.
SINGLE FINDS AND LOCAL VARIATIONS ON KNOWN TYPES
A agmen (Pl. 6/3:33) has p ese ed discus and nozzle wi h simila elie deco a ions on he
shoulde o ou g oup o ib - shoulde ed Dalma ian and  acian local a ia ions on Iconomu
ype XXX/B onee ype XXIX om he exca a ion (c. . Pl. 6/1:9–10, Pl. 6/2:11–17). Howe e ,
in his case, he elie ays a e made wi h deep incuse cu s on he shoulde , and he nozzle is
sepa a ed by a hick band wi h h ee elie globules. Alamp om Pa likeni has simila elie
ibs (Sul o a 1991, обр. 24). O he pa allels, such as alamp o his ype om No iodunum
254 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
DISTAFF
Two objec s, i s one, no. 18, ound du ing he exca a ions inside Room D, and ano he one, no.
19, eco e ed du ing he a chaeological su ey, could ha e once been pa o adis a . No. 18
(Fig. 4:18; Pl. 8/2:18)is abody pa (ca. 50 mm long, b oken on bo h sides), deco a ed nea he
b oken ends by incised lines, and sligh ly na owing owa ds one o he sides. e wid h pe sis s
almos he same h oughou he whole agmen , which is unusual o pins, bu cha ac e is ic
o dis a s. e closes pa allel o his body pa migh ha e been ound in he bu ial mound
exca a ed no h - eas o he illage o Boyano o,3 in Elho o municipali y in Yambol Dis ic ,
da ed o he end o he 1s and 2nd cen u y AD. Se e al en i ely p ese ed bone dis a s had been
unco e ed he e, h ee o hem composed o h ee such body segmen s he same as ou piece
(Ag e 2013, 353). Due o he na owing on one side wi h mo e p o ound deco a ion, he Yu a-
-S oyno agmen could be econs uc ed as he i s segmen o he dis a , nea es o he op.
e second objec , no. 19, ep esen s ca ing o an animal, adog (ca. 20 mm high), s anding
on a ec angula pla o m (Fig. 4:19; Pl. 8/2:19). e b eak in a iangula shape jus a he
boom o he pla o m sugges s ha he objec had been b oken o om ashaÞ. e animal
ep esen a ion is li ely and bea s ela i ely delica e de ails conside ing i s size. e dog ail
c ea es asmall loop which migh ha e been used o secu e he dis a by as ing agains
losing i . Askilled a isan used kni e as well as ad ill o i s ca ing. Fo he pa allel we may
look again o he nec opolis o Boyano o and he dis a s unco e ed he e. One o hem is
c owned by asmall animal s anding on a ec angula pla o m. e size, he cons uc ion o
he pla o m, as well as he animal - shaped deco a ion on i s op is e y simila o he one om
Yu a - S oyno (c. . Ag e 2013, 353).
SPOONS
e e we e also wo examples o o al spoons ound a Yu a - S oyno, no. 20 (Fig. 4:20; Pl.
8/2:20)and no. 21 (Fig. 4:21; Pl. 8/2:21). E en hough one has been unco e ed a he ex-
ca a ion and he o he one du ing he su ace su ey, hey a e e y simila ega ding he
dimensions o he bowl (25×22 mm, 24×21 mm) and ashallow blade. ey seem o be shaped
in o a e y simila o m, howe e , no. 20 has ahandle aached on he longe side o he bowl,
while no. 21 on he sho e side. Spoon bowl no. 20 p ese es he es o a iangle - like elie
ein o cemen placed o e he handle aachmen which was (unsuccess ully) s eng hening
he connec ion. e handle o no. 21 also b oke o jus abo e he spoon bowl, indica ing he
weakes poin o his ins umen .
ese small, agile, and a he delica e spoons migh ha e been used in cosme ics, pha ma-
cy, o medicine, as hey a e no sui able o dining (Bí ó 1994, 44–45). Ba ely isible concen ic
ma ks in he inne sides o he bowls e eal he echnology o i s p oduc ion, as, excep o
a ile and akni e, he a isan mus ha e employed ala he o make he su ace almos pe -
ec ly smoo h (Ba bie 2016, 114–115); see Pl. 8/3:21. is ype o spoon is acommon ind in
he Roman p o inces (Riha– S e n 1982, 16), wi h pa allels om di e en selemen s and
nec opolises in Bulga ia, such as hose om He aclea Sin ica in he S uma Valley (Cholako
2015, 132–133), umula nec opolis nea S aldzha in he Yambol Dis ic (Cholako 2016, 161),
o om No ae a he Danube Ri e (Vladko a 2012, 230–231). Finds o hese spoons om
S aldzha and No ae ha e been da ed o he 2nd and 3 d cen u y AD.
3 e exca a ed bu ial mound is in ac hal way be ween illages Boyano o and S oyno, which a e
abou 4 km apa each o he .

255SELECTED SMALL FINDS
MISCELLANEOUS
e las objec , no. 22, could no ha e been conclusi ely classed among he wo ked bones,
al hough i bea s ce ain ambiguous ai s o which i dese es o be inco po a ed in o his
collec ion. I looks like a agmen o a lu e (hollowed bone) wi h only one ully p ese ed
hole and ano he one pa ly damaged (placed ca. 15 mm apa om each o he ) (Fig. 4:22; Pl.
8/2:22). e bone i sel is sligh ly ben which is no ypical o Roman lu es, which end o
be s aigh and bigge in size. e holes ha e been pie ced bu apa om ha , he e a e no
ool ma ks isible. Examples o bone lu es wi h bo h d illed and pie ced holes a e ela i ely
common du ing p ehis o ical, Roman bu also Medie al pe iods (Bí ó 1994, 60; Gál 2005, 327).
Fig. 4: D awings o he bone i ems; 7: dice; 18–19: agmen s o dis a s; 20–21: spoon bowls; 22: lu e
(?). ByD. Mildo á.
256 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
CONCLUSION
e e acoa igu ines as well as he wo ked bones all in o he ca ego y o less equen
inds unco e ed a he selemen o Yu a - S oyno. I is di icul o con i m, ha his migh be
a esul o he loo ing ac i i y, which seems o signi ican ly modi y he amoun o in o ma ion
and i ems e ie ed om he selemen . Wo ked bones a e comple ely missing in he RT soil
[SU001], exca a ed and ca e ully examined by he loo e s, while hey a e qui e equen in he
le elling laye as well as in he ills o he di ches inside o he house. is compa ison gi es
us an oppo uni y o e lec on p opo ions o objec s loca ed in he soil exca a ed by loo e s
and he o iginal con ex s o he selemen .
Despi e he small numbe o inds, he mos common ca ego ies o a iable objec a e s ill
well ep esen ed a he selemen . ey include an h opomo phic and zoomo phic e acoa
igu ines and oys, ma ble s a uees o small dimensions, and a iable wo ked bones such as
di e en ypes o pins, dis a s, small spoons used o cosme ics, pha macy, o medicine, as
well as i ems aes ing o boa d games and gaming ac i i ies in gene al– he dice and p obably
some o he as agali. Bo h he e acoa p oduc s as well as he wo ked bones ollow he same
pae ns and shapes widesp ead a ound he Roman Empi e, which a e usually no locally spe-
ci ic. Howe e , he compa ison wi h o he such objec s mos ly om Balkan peninsula allowed
us o da e he inds in o a ime ange o he 2nd–4 h c. AD (see Tab.1).
Se e al o he i ems a e o high - quali y execu ion including he ep esen a ion o he dog
igu ine om adis a , which, oge he wi h he o he segmen o adis a , ha e di ec pa al-
lels in he nea by ich g a e o abu ial mound in Boyano o da ed o he end o he 1s and 2nd
cen u y AD. We may also no ice he simila i y o he e acoa eagle wing wi h he p oduc s
o he wo kshop in Philippopolis ( ace) ac i e in he 3 d c.– ea ly 4 h c. AD, and he wheel,
connec ed o he ho se ide igu ine, wi h he aes ed p oduc ion cen e in Bu o o (Moesia
In e io ), newly da ed o he end o he 2nd and mid-3 d c. AD. We do no ha e any p oo besides
he ypological simila i y hese objec s o igina e om he named wo kshops, howe e , hese
pa allels help us o pu he selemen o Yu a - S oyno in o he con ex o i s hin e land and
o he Roman p o ince o  ace in gene al.
e head o he bea ded man, p esumably agod Asclepius o He acles, is done in inely
g ained whi e ma ble. e depic ion o he man’s ace is well execu ed, al hough hea ily
e oded. e ind is ou s anding in he whole assemblage o Yu a - S oyno, howe e mos ly o
i s singula i y, as i ep esen s he only ee - s anding s a uee unco e ed on he selemen .
ABBREVIATIONS
AB = A chaeologia Bulga ica
LIMC II = Lexicon Iconog aphicum My hologiae Classicae II: Aph odisias– A hena. 1984, Zü ich– München–
Düsseldo .
LIMC IV = Lexicon Iconog aphicum My hologiae Classicae IV: E os (in E u ia)– He akles. 1988, Zü ich–
München– Düsseldo .
SH = S udia He cynia
257SELECTED SMALL FINDS
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Adéla Minaříko á
Depa men o A His o y
Facul y o A s, Cha les Uni e si y
Cele ná 20, CZ-11000, P ague 1
adel.mina iko [email protected]
259ANALYSIS OF THE OSTEOLOGICAL MATERIAL FROM YURTA-STROYNO
Analysis o he Os eological Ma e ial om Yu a-S oyno
Mi iam Ný l o á Fišáko á
ABSTRACT
e ag icul u al beha iou o he selemen o Yu a - S oyno shows ha cale, sheep/goa s and domes ic
pigs we e impo an sou ces o mea and/o milk o he inhabi an s. Mos o he bone emains belong o
cale, ollowed by pigs and small uminan s. In addi ion o domes ic animals, bones o adomes ic dog and
ca we e iden i ied. Bi ds we e no ound and om ish only a ew e eb ae and unspeci ied agmen s we e
ecognized. e ep esen a i es o snails poin o he p oximi y o ields and d ie and wa me clima e and
indica e he aqua ic en i onmen o s agnan and muddy wa e s. Pa icula ly impo an a e indings o
he aqua ic snails which show ha he a ea o he exca a ed house was co e ed by i e sedimen s caused
by loods.
Mos o he os eological ma e ial om Yu a - S oyno was e ie ed om he so - called le elling laye
laid no h o he exca a ed house. is laye is amix u e o selemen was e which was accumula ed he e
du ing he inal s age o he house o ele a e/d ain he a ea. Exposi ion o he analysed bones on an open
space is con i med by he aces o dog gnawing on he bones.
e esul s om Yu a - S oyno we e compa ed wi h he os eological analysis om Nicopolis ad Is um.
In he compa ison, he basic spec um o domes ic auna is he same, while he os eological emains om
Yu a - S oyno p o ided less a ied wild auna. In bo h cases we can howe e spo ha he cale b eeding and
pas o alism was an impo an pa o selemen li e in he a ea o mode n Bulga ia du ing he Roman pe iod.
KEYWORDS
Bulga ia; Roman  ace; u al selemen ; zooa chaeology; animals; bones.
INTRODUCTION
e a icle deals wi h he os eological ma e ial ound wi hin he exca a ions o he Yu a-
-S oyno A chaeological P ojec (SAP) aking place in 2014–2016 in Yambol Dis ic , Bulga ia.
Al oge he , ma e ial collec ed om en deposi s was e alua ed, wi h se en o hem c ea ing
apa o he so - called le elling laye 1 placed no h o he house on i s cou ya d, and wi h
h ee ills o di ches ound inside o he house2 loca ed jus below he soil exca a ed by he
loo e s (see he exca a ion epo : Tušlo á– Weisso á– Baka dzhie 2022), he e Tab.1.
e le elling laye is up o 40 cm hick, loca ed abou 50 cm below he opsoil. I was sp ead
a once in he a ea no h o he house o e di e en exca a ed enches, ele a ing he a ea
o he p esumed cou ya d o he house. I is cha ac e ized by ahigh amoun o di e se and
agmen ed ma e ial compound o he selemen was e: poe y agmen s, a chi ec u al
ce amics, p oduc ion was e, wo ked and unwo ked s ones o di e en sizes and agmen s
o small inds o a ious ma e ials. Besides ha , i also con ains ahigh amoun o os eological
ma e ial o di e en s a e o p ese a ion. e le elling laye mixes ma e ial da ed o he ime
span o he 2nd–5 h/6 h c. AD.
1 i.e. laye s SU010; SU012; SU016; SU078; SU084; FA08 and le elling laye I.
2 Di ches SU008, SU021, SU057.

260 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
e os eological ma e ial om he a ea no h o he house o igina es a di e en enches
and a se e al di e en s a ig aphical uni s (SU). Ne e heless, all hese a e pa s o one le -
elling laye . e le elling laye was di ided wi hin he exca a ion based on di e en squa es
and sub - uni s and, consequen ly, i has many SU numbe s. Wha is impo an o us is he di-
ision in o i s uppe and lowe laye s in some o he squa es as he densi y o he inds, as well
as hei agmen a ion, di e s. Consequen ly, in he squa e 100E_110N SE he laye [SU078]
was placed abo e he [SU084], in he squa e 95E_105N NW he laye [SU012] was placed abo e
he laye [SU016].3 In squa e 100E_105N NE he sub - uni s we e pu oge he and p ocessed
in bulk as one laye , u he ma ked as Le ellingI. e wo emaining laye s p ocessed he e
a e [SU010] and FA08, bo h co esponding o he lowe le elling laye , i.e. pa allel in heigh
wi h [SU016] and [SU084] (see Tab.1).
e h ee ills o di ches ([SU008], [SU021], [SU057]) loca ed inside o he house ep esen
he es o he analysed ma e ial. ey migh ha e been c ea ed in an iqui y, bu also du ing
ma e ial ex ac ion, some ime p io o he la es loo ing. ey we e all co e ed by he RT
soil [SU001] exca a ed ecen ly by he easu e hun e s. In consequence, hey ep esen he
only places inside o he house, which we e no a ec ed by he ecen loo ing ac i i ies. Fo
ade ailed desc ip ion o he si ua ion and each laye and ill see Tušlo á, Weisso á and Bak-
a dzhie 2022.
METHODS
e a chaeozoological ma e ial was de e mined by commonly used ana omical a lases and
manuals (Schmid 1972; Cohen– Se jean son 1996; Če ený– Komá ek– Š ě ba 1999;
Bocheński– Tomek 2000; Komá ek– Š ě ba– Fej a 2001) and by he compa ison wi h he
os eological collec ion deposi ed a he Ins i u e o Physiology, Facul y o Medicine, Masa yk
Uni e si y, B no. Bones o indi idual animals we e dis inguished and de e mined on he bases
o he ollowing wo ks: he sheep and goa s: W. P ummel– H. J. F ische (1986); S. Payne (1973);
P.Haels ead– P.Collins (1995; 2002); and B. J. Adams– P.J. C ab ee (2008); he domes ic and
3 While SU078 = SU012 and SU084 = SU016.
SU T ench Sec . SU speci ica ion SU posi ion
SU010 90E_105N NE le elling laye lowe
SU012 95E_105N NW le elling laye uppe
SU016 95E_105N NW le elling laye lowe
SU078 100E_110N SE le elling laye uppe
SU084 100E_110N SE le elling laye lowe
Le elling I 100E_105N NE le elling laye uppe + lowe
FA08 105E_105N NW le elling laye lowe
SU008 100E_100N SW di ch inside he house
SU021 95E_105N SE di ch inside he house
SU057 100E_105N SE di ch inside he house
Tab.1: O e iew o he laye s and di ches which we e e alua ed o he os eological ma e ial.
261ANALYSIS OF THE OSTEOLOGICAL MATERIAL FROM YURTA-STROYNO
wild pigs: G. Payne– G. Bulla (1988); he cale sex was iden i ied and desc ibed acco ding o
P.A mi age (1982). Whe e he condi ion o skele al emains su i ed, os eome ic alues we e
measu ed acco ding o on D iesch (1976) me hodology. e heigh a wi he s o he animal
was calcula ed based on he ins uc ions o M. Teiche (1969) and A. on den D iesch– J.
Boessneck (1974).
To de e mine he age o he animals, cu en me hods based on he de elopmen o epi-
physis (Rei z– Wing 2008) and oo h e up ion and ab asion (Payne 1973; G an 1982) we e
used. e ype o mea based on ound bones was de e mined on he basis o he wo ks o A.
T awiński (1948); M. Sobociński (1981; 1991); V. Pá al– Z. Mechu o á– M. Riedlo á (1995); and
L. S einhause e al. (2000). Howe e , i should be bo ne in mind ha hese a e mode n c i e ia,
hei use o he Roman pe iod condi ions is only indica i e. Basic quan i ica ion me hods
used in he a icle a e based on s anda d me hodologies, which a e p esen ed in he wo ks
o R. Kyselý (2004) and E. Rei z– E. Wing (2008). e complemen a y me hod o assessmen
based on he numbe o whole bone agmen s is quan i ica ion o agmen mass analysis;
bones we e weighed on labo a o y scales o wo en hs o ag am.
e me hod o quan i ica ion o NISP (numbe o iden i ied bone agmen s) was calcu-
la ed o indi idual agmen s. In he case ha i was clea ha he ailing epiphysis belongs
o he diaphysis, hen bo h agmen s we e coun ed as one bone (MNE– minimum numbe
o elemen s). MNI alues (minimum numbe o indi iduals) we e de e mined based on he
numbe o ana omical elemen s and hei pa s, aking in o accoun he de e mina ion o he
side in combina ion wi h agmen a ion and age o each species. e zoological and ana omical
e minology used in he wo k is based on cu en axonomic nomencla u e and ecommen-
da ions (Gen y– Clu on - B ock– G o es 2004; Nomina Ana omica Ve e ina ia 2012).
THE OSTEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS
Below is ab ie o e iew o iden i ied auna and he size ca ego ies om all con ex s oge he .
Amo e de ailed b eakdown is gi en in Tab.2.
e lis o he de ec ed species
Mammals species
Bos au us
Sus domes ica
O is/Cap a
Canis amilia is
Felis domes ica
La ge mammals (cale o ho se size)
Medium size mammals (pig size)
Small mammals (sheep o goa size)
Fishes
Pisces sp. Inde .
Gas opoda
Cepaea indobonensis
Poma ia elegans
Cy aulus albus
262 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Tab.2: De ailed o e iew o he auna ound in each o he examined con ex s wi h amoun o he
iden i ied bones.
e o al numbe o he bones and bone agmen s collec ed wi hin he en con ex s was 2156
pieces wi h a o al weigh o 8.7 kg (Tab.3). Mos o he ma e ial was e y agmen ed; he
bone agmen s ange om 1.5 cm o 10 cm. e collec ion o os eological emains om Yu a-
-S oyno p o ided acommon ange o mammalian domes ic species. I was ep esen ed by
he cale (Bos au us), he domes ic pig (Sus domes ica), he domes ic sheep (O is a ies), he do-
mes ic goa (Cap a hi cus), he domes ic dog (Canis amilia is) he domes ic ca (Felis domes ica),
and by size ca ego ies o ala ge mammal (cale o ho se size), amedium sized mammal (pig
size), and asmall mammal (sheep o goa size). Wildli e animals a e ep esen ed by emains
o uniden i ied ishes and species g as opods Poma ia elegans, Cepaea indobonensis and lu ial
gas opod Cy aulus albus. Mos o he bone emains come om he cale, ollowed by domes ic
pig and by size ca ego ies o medium - size and la ge mammals. Amuch lesse numbe o inds
is o sheep/goa s, medium - sized mammals, dogs and ca s (Tab.2). On he basis o NISP, MNI
and MNE he mos ep esen ed g oups we e cale and la ge mammal ca ego ies, ollowed by
pigs and medium size mammals wi h e en lesse numbe o small uminan s (sheep/goa s)
and size ca ego ies o small mammals and snails; o he species a e in mino i y (Tab.3). F om
he poin o iew o he weigh ca ego ies o he bones, he mos abundan is he cale o-
ge he wi h he la ge mammal size ca ego y co esponding o he size o he cale o ho se.
e second abundan species is he pig and he size ca ego y o amedium - sized mammal
A chaeological con ex De e mined animal species
SU T ench Sec . SU speci i-
ca ion
Cale
Pigs
Sheep/Goa s
Ca
Dog
Pisces sp. Inde .
Cepaea indobonensis
Poma ia elegans
Cy aulus albus
La ge mammals
Medium size
mammals
Small mammals
Uniden i ied
To al amoun
SU078 100E_110N SE le elling
laye 96 27 8 42 50 20 97 340
SU084 100E_110N SE le elling
laye 14 512 22 863 124
Le elling I 100E_105N NE le elling
laye 14 3 4 18 26 18 53 136
SU012 95E_105N NW le elling
laye 4 2 8 14
SU016 95E_105N NW le elling
laye 17 14 433 56 401 525
SU010 90E_105N NE le elling
laye 14 23 383 31 11 574 739
FA08 105E_105N NW le elling
laye 4 5 2 3 2 8 24
SU008 100E_100N SW ill, inside o
he house 21 11 12 1 2 7 78 132
SU021 95E_105N SE ill, inside o
he house 4 0 1 2 2 9
SU057 100E_105N SE ill, inside o
he house 2 4 2 6 9 11 79 113
To al amoun 190 94 45 2 2 4 212 173 49 1363 2134
263ANALYSIS OF THE OSTEOLOGICAL MATERIAL FROM YURTA-STROYNO
( he size o apig). e hi d mos abundan species is he sheep/goa in his espec , e en in
connec ion wi h he size ca ego y o asmall mammal, which co esponds o he sheep/goa
size. Many bones a e in poo condi ion which likely ela es o he pos - deposi ion p ocesses;
ibs and e eb a es, as well as e idence o se e ely bu ned bones, a e comple ely missing in
he e alua ed assemblage.
THE LEVELLING LAYER
In he uppe laye [SU078] in he squa e 100E_110N SE, and in he uppe laye [SU012] in he
squa e 95E_105N NW, we ound he mos abundan emains o an ox and he size ca ego y
o he medium sized mammal (pig size), which a e ollowed by domes ic pigs and he size
ca ego y o he la ge mammal (ho se size); less ep esen ed is sheep/goa s and he size ca -
ego y o asmall mammal; majo i y o he ma e ial belongs o uniden i ied bone agmen s.
Asimila si ua ion was de ec ed in he lowe laye [SU084] in he squa e 100E_110N SE, and
he lowe laye [SU016] in he squa e 95E_105N NW. Bo h con ain he mos emnan s o he
la ge mammal and cale size ca ego y, ollowed by sheep/goa s, pigs, and he midsize mammal
ca ego y. e uniden i ied bones a e as well he mos ep esen ed. e di e ence be ween
he uppe and he lowe s a ig aphically posi ioned laye s is he highe agmen a ion o he
bones connec ed wi h he uppe laye s.
In addi ion o hese, he hick le elling laye I, which was no di ided in o he uppe and
lowe sub - uni s, is composed p edominan ly o unde e minable bones and o bones o all
Species NISP MNI MNE
Cale 190 5 182
Domes ic pig 94 4 74
Sheep/goa s 45 4 32
Dog 2 1 2
Domes ic ca 2 1 2
Pisces sp. Inde . 4 2 4
Poma ia elegans 666
Cepaea indobonensis 777
Cy aulus albus 999
La ge mammals 212 212
Medium size mammals 173 173
Small mammals 49 49
To ally de e mined 793 752
Unde e minable 1363
To al (pcs.) 2156 39 1322
Weigh (g.) 8700
Tab.3: e o e iew o he ollowing alues: numbe o iden i ied bone agmen s (NISP); minimum
numbe o indi iduals (MNI); minimum numbe o elemen s (MNE).

271CONCLUDING REMARKS...
Concluding Rema ks on he Resul s o he Yu a-S oyno
A chaeological P ojec
One o he bigges conce ns o he Yu a - S oyno A chaeological P ojec was seing up he
ounda ion da e and ch onology o he selemen o con ibu e o he discussion on he hab-
i a ion o he a ea du ing he Roman pe iod. Due o he s a e o he selemen p ese a ion,
we could no base ou conclusions on well s a i ied con ex s om he selemen i sel , and
we had o sea ch o pa allels a o he a chaeological si es in he Balkan peninsula o e en
u he a ield.
All he ma e ial s udies including a chi ec u al componen s, poe y, glass, me als, e a-
coa, wo ked bones, coins and o he numisma ic and epig aphic inds sugges he main peak
o he habi a ion da ing o he 2nd–3 d and/o 4 h c. AD. e e a e se e al single inds which
a e, o which could be, da ed o he 1s c. BC– 1s c. AD such as he coin o Augus us min ed in
27–23BC.e numbe o hese inds is howe e e y small, and hey do no aes o he ex-
is ence o aselemen in he a ea o Yu a a ha ime.
Bee aes ed is he ma e ial da ed o he La e An iqui y (4 h/5 h–6 h c. AD) including se -
e al poe y agmen s and glass and me al objec s o daily use, which a e egula ly scae ed
along he whole in es iga ed a ea. I is necessa y o say, hese a e p esen in he dozens o
inds as opposed o housands o a ying objec s om an ea lie da e. I seems he selemen
was somehow used du ing his pe iod bu o asho ime and/o wi h much smalle in ensi y.
E en ewe inds a e da ed o he Medie al pe iod (ca. 11
h
–13
h
c. AD). I migh be o in e es
ha hese objec s a e o pe sonal deco a ion such as agmen s o se e al glass b acele s o
ab onze pendan which no mally belong o acciden al losses, d opped by hei owne s. Pe -
haps hese inds ela e o he icini y o a oad, such as he one cu on he slope o Bakadzhik
Hill on he sou h o he selemen .
e selemen i sel seems o ha e a u al - indus ial cha ac e . e aes ed auna in-
cludes mainly cale, sheep/goa s and pigs used o mea and/o milk; hun ed wild animals
we e no iden i ied a all. e milling equipmen p ese ed in b oken pieces was used o he
p ocessing o di e en ce eals. Based on he palaeoecological da a, he a ea along he middle
s eam o he Tundzha Ri e was by he Roman pe iod dedica ed o g ain cul i a ion and
s ock b eeding, wi h ew woodlands. Wi h no o lile o es , he hun ing possibili ies would
ha e been limi ed o ou o he ques ion o he inhabi an s, which seems o be e lec ed in
he composi ion o he os eological inds.
Rega ding he indus ial pa , wo wo kshops we e iden i ied owa ds he middle - uppe pa
o he selemen ’snucleus. One o hem is aglass wo kshop using blowpipes o essel p oduc-
ion, wo king wi h aw glass bu pe haps also emel ing b oken glass agmen s (culle ) o he
p oduc ion o new i ems. e second wo kshop is an i on wo king a ea, aes ed by agmen s
o asmel ing u nace(s), as well as pieces o smel ing and o ging slags poin ing no only o
p ima y i on o e p ocessing, bu also o he inishing o indi idual p oduc s made on he spo .
e cha ac e o he inhabi an s is di icul o speci y any close . e ew insc ip ions
which we e ound a e in he G eek alphabe . Some seem o be made on he selemen , o he s
migh ha e a elled wi h he poe y o he objec on which hey a e aes ed. Consequen ly,
we may only con i m ha G eek was no alien o he inhabi an s, as i was howe e common
elsewhe e in Roman  ace. Alongside Roman s yle poe y, he inhabi an s s ill used he
handmade poe y o he  acian adi ion and o ms made locally, which migh sugges
alocal o igin o a leas some o hem. Addi ionally, he e a e ew i ems, especially among he
272 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
b onze ado nmen s, which migh be connec ed wi h amili a y en i onmen . I is in e es ing
ha hese a e da ed qui e p ecisely om he mid-2nd ill mid-3 d c. AD; ew migh be also con-
nec ed o ca al y. I canno be p o en i hey ela e o he e e ans o he auxilia y uni coho
II Lucensium (equi a a) s a ioned in Kabyle since 135/136 AD. Howe e , besides he mili a y
diploma and insc ip ions aes ing o he Roman amily name A ilius ound bo h in Kabyle and
Yu a - S oyno, hese inds build up he e idence ela ed o amili a y / ex - mili a y ma e ial
cul u e p esen a he selemen and o apossible ela ion wi h he mili a y camp a Kabyle.
e poe y s udies ( olume II) b ing mo e in o ma ion abou he economic connec ions
o he selemen . Rega ding he s udies in he cu en olume, we need o men ion he discus
agmen wi h abus o A hena and he ine and ay deco a ion on e acoa lamp shoulde s
bo h o he ype B onee XXVII which seem o be p oduced in G eek wo kshops a he u n
o he 3 d c. / 4 h c. AD; in he case o he discus wi h A hena i likely o igina ed di ec ly in
A hens. Se e al glass agmen s a e likely o eas e n p o enance. ese include he im and
body agmen s o beake /bowl wi h ubula idge (Nea Eas ?), he body agmen s wi h a ine
lea o namen , wi h ahoneycomb deco a ion (Nea Eas ?) and wi h he ace deco a ion. e
lae migh be p oduced on he no he Black Sea coas o a he Nea Eas in Du a Eu opos.
e e is also ab onze objec which is e y un ypical o he Roman en i onmen . I is he
pendan in he shape o an axe head which is ypically connec ed wi h he Go hs and hei
cul u al milieu, in ou a ea likely connec ed o acciden al loss in a pe iod o he Go hic ides.
Rega ding he hin e land o Yu a - S oyno, in o de o gi e us amuch close con ex ,
we may compa e s ylis ically some inds om he selemen wi h he bu ial mound nea
Boyano o. e wo bone dis a s ound in Yu a - S oyno seem o be om he same ype (and
p oduc ion cen e?) as he dis a s ound in g a e 8 o he Boyano o mound da ed o he end o
he 1s and 2nd c. AD. Fu he in he egion, he e acoa wing o an eagle migh ind pa allels
in he poe y wo kshop in Philippopolis ( ace) ac i e in he 3 d c.– ea ly 4 h c. AD, and he
e acoa wheel o aho se ide igu ine, as well as some o he e acoa lamps, a he po -
e y wo kshop in Bu o o (Moesia In e io ), ecen ly eda ed o he end o he 2
nd
and mid-3
d
c.
AD. Besides as ylis ic compa ison, some o he s ones ound a he selemen we e analysed
and compa ed wi h he ancien Kamene s Qua y si ua ed abou 8 km no h - eas o Yu a-
-S oyno. e analysis sugges s ha he qua y migh ha e been he sou ce o he ounda ions
o he houses a he selemen as well as o some o he a chi ec u al componen s (capi als).
e a chi ec u e o he selemen could be in es iga ed h ough he exca a ed house,
bu as well h ough he walls ound in si u unco e ed by he easu e hun e s. e ounda-
ions made o he local s ones we e o ien ed almos in an eas - wes – no h - sou h di ec ion
wi h abou 10° inclina ion o he walls. e es o he selemen seems o ollow he same
pae n and as such c ea ed a egula g id. e uppe s uc u e was made o ahal - imbe ed
adobe cons uc ion co e ed by agabled oo o Laconian ooÞiles. Based on he exca a ed
house’sou e dimensions (ca. 6×24–25 m), i p obably had only one loo and an aic. e
uppe cons uc ion was e y likely co e ed by awhi e - ed plas e , p o ec ing he walls made
o he o ganic ma e ial. In i s disposi ion, he house esembles he so - called long-/s ip-
-houses combining li ing qua e s a he ea pa o he house and indus ial/comme cial
a eas acing he s ee .
e su ace su ey acili a ed by he wo k o he loo e s p o ided acompa ison om he
o he a eas o he selemen ’snucleus, which seems o be buil using he same a chi ec u al
componen s. is lea es us wonde ing how many cons uc ion phases he selemen migh
ha e had, as he exca a ed house was buil using ma e ial (milling s ones, elie s, clay wi h
poe y o binding) om an ea lie Roman habi a ion, howe e , o simila ch onology as
he inal house.
273CONCLUDING REMARKS...
e ma e ial cul u e gi es us an insigh in o he li es o he Yu a - S oyno inhabi an s,
which, despi e hei dedica ion o ag icul u e, cale b eeding, and c aÞs possessed also lux-
u ious i ems impo ed om u he a ield (e.g. he ew glass essels and e acoa lamps) o
pe haps p oduced locally, bu no a ailable o e e yone (e.g. he b onze lea -shaped essel
aachmen om abucke o cauld on). We may also specula e ha he e migh ha e been
smalle - sized he mae somewhe e a he selemen as aes ed by he a chi ec u al compo-
nen s o hypocas um and pe haps also some communal baking acili ies as sugges ed by he
agmen o a segmen ed mill.
In his inal pa ag aph o he book, we would like o add asho no e on he in es iga ion o
aselemen dis u bed by easu e hun e s. In some ways o una ely, he in e es s o eas-
u e hun e s and o a chaeologis s di e and while he loo e s aim o ind he shinies objec s,
p esuming hey a e wo h mos on he black ma ke , a chaeologis s ead be ween he lines
and p ize much mo e objec s o daily li e o he common selemen inhabi an s which migh
look unin e es ing a he i s sigh . In he case o Yu a - S oyno, among he mos p ecious
inds in e ms o impo ance, bu no alue, a e he iden i ica ion o he glass wo kshop and o
he i on smel ing and smi hing acili ies. e emains o hese p oduc ion ac i i ies a e by no
means in e es ing o he easu e hun e s, while a chaeologis s immedia ely see he po en ial
o u he s udies and analyses, which p o ide abundan in o ma ion on he p o enance o
he aw ma e ials, echnologies used, o he inal p oduc s, which hus enable a deepe analy-
sis o he selemen , i s inhabi an s, and hei economic and cul u al ies. is ealisa ion
gi es us hope ha each a chaeological si e, e en ahea ily dis u bed one, has he po en ial o
in es iga ion and may signi ican ly con ibu e o egional and sup a - egional s udies.
e edi o s
Pe a Tušlo á, Ba bo a Weisso á & S e an Baka dzhie
PLATES

277PLATES
Pl. 1/1: Imp in s on egulae; 8: dog’s paw; 11: ox’s paw; 13: hoo o a sheep/goa ; 16: hoo o a pig
(Pho os by A. Minaříko á, d awings by M. Minařík and B. Weisso á).
278 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Pl. 1/2: Imp in s on b icks; 19: human oo ; 20: human hand; 21: wa e owl-like oo s amps
(Pho os by A. Minaříko á, d awings by M. Minařík and B. Weisso á).
279PLATES
Pl. 1/3: 27: Roman-Do ic capi al Type 1; 28: simpli ied e sion o Roman-Do ic capi al Type 1; 29:
capi al o base; 30: cylind ical s one; 31–33: ma blelike s one pla es (Pho os by A. Minaříko á
and B. Weisso á).
286 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Pl. 3/4: Mic i es; 4 and 6 ep esen de ails o he ma k-ups in 3 and 5 and a e magni ied by 10×; he
o he s by 2.5×. 1–2: sample no. 2 (capi al) in PPL and XPL; 3:po ous and c acked ma ix o sample
no. 6 (mo a ); 4: p ecipi a ed ca bona e c ys als in sample no. 6 (mo a ); 5–8: sample no. 5
(la ge wo ked s one); 5-6: emains o ossils; 7: allochemical componen s; 8: qua zi e g ain.
Abb e ia ions: PPL – plain pola ized ligh ; XPL – c ossed pola ized ligh .

287PLATES
Pl. 3/5: Volcanic Rocks; all magni ied by 2.5×.1–4: py oclas ic wo ked s one (no. 10); 5–8: inne s one
o a segmen ed mill (no. 7), SiO2- ich basal ic ock; 5: elonga ed esicles; 6: luidal s uc u e; 7–8:
agg ega e o phenoc ys s (plagioclase eldspa s and py oxene c ys als). Abb e ia ions: PPL –
plain pola ized ligh ; XPL – c ossed pola ized ligh .
288 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Pl. 3/6: Mac oscopic pic u es o he Kamene s Qua y specimens (nos. 11–14); all pic u es a e scaled
equi alen o a 3 cm wid h.
11
12
13
14
289PLATES
Pl. 3/7: Kamene s Qua y specimens; all magni ied by 2.5×. 1–2: mgs and g anoblas ic s uc u e o
specimen no. 11; 3–4: mgs and p e e ed elonga ion di ec ion o he smalle c ys als cons i u ing
specimen no. 12; 5–6: MGS o specimen no. 13; 7: i on hyd oxide-s yloli es (specimen no. 14);
8: b eccia ed appea ance (specimen no. 13). Abb e ia ions: mgs – mean g ain-size; MGS –
maximum g ain-size; PPL – plain pola ized ligh ; XPL – c ossed pola ized ligh .
290 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Pl. 4/1: Deco a ed s one pla es; 1: agmen o a ho se ide pla e; 2: agmen o a pla e men ioning
Roman amily name A ilius; 3: agmen o a ho se ide pla e. Pho os by J. Tlus á and P. Tušlo á.
291PLATES
Pl. 4/2: An insc ibed Roman b ick, wi h a dedica ion in G eek o a young emale (dei y?). Hand-
made insc ip ion in de ail (boom). Pho o by B. Weisso á.

292 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Pl. 5/1: B onze coins ound by SAP. 1: coin o Philipp II, ca. 350–300 BC; 2: coin o Augus us, 27–23 BC;
3: coin o T ajan, AD 98–117; 4: coin o he Fla ian dynas y? Domi ian?; 5: coin o an unknown
Empe o (Ma cus Au elius?); 6: coin o Ioulia Domna, AD 193–217; 7: coin o Ca acalla, AD 211–
217; 8: coin o Diadoumenian, AD 217–218; 9: coin o T anquilina, AD 241–244.
293PLATES
Pl. 6/1: Te acoa lamps; 1–5: ype B onee XXVII; 6–8: ype Loeschcke IV/V imi a ion (?); 9–10:
ype Iconomu ype XXX / B onee ype XXIX.
294 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Pl. 6/2: Te acoa lamps; 11–17: ype Iconomu ype XXX / B onee ype XXIX; 18–25: ype
Loeschcke VIII.
295PLATES
Pl. 6/3: 26–28: Bildlampen (Loeschcke ypes I–IV) (?); 29, 33–35: uniden i ied; 30: lamps and (?);
31–32: Bildlampen (Loeschcke ype I–V) (?); 36–37: Fi malampen (?).
302 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Pl. 7/7: F agmen s o aw glass and p oduc ion was e; 150: h eads and mel ed glass; 151, 152, 154:
glass moils; 153, 157: aw glass; 155: glass d ops; 156: culle .

303PLATES
Pl. 8/1: Pho o o he head o a bea ded man. By J. Tlus á, D. Mildo á.
304 THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
Pl. 8/2: Pho os o he bone inds. By J. Tlus á, D. Mildo á.
8
14
11
13
18
17
16 22
19
20
21
7
9
10 12 15
305PLATES
Pl. 8/3: Pho os o he bones wi h wo ked ma ks; o e iew on he le¨, de ail o he same i em on he
igh . Nos. 9–10, 12: pins wi h di e en deg ees o smoo hed su ace, no. 9: e y smoo hed, nos.
10, 12: wi h ool ma ks; no. 21: spoon bowl wi h ma ks o a la he. By M. Minařík, D. Mildo á.
9
10
12
21
ISBN 978–80–7671–068–9
THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
THE YURTA-STROYNO
ARCHAEOLOGICAL
PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace
The Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec in es i-
ga ed a Roman u al se lemen loca ed along he
middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e , in sou h-eas
-
e n Bulga ia (Roman p o ince o Th ace). The main
objec i es o he p ojec we e he de e mina ion
o he habi a ion dynamics o he se lemen , he
in es iga ion o i s a chi ec u al appea ance and
gene al unc ion, as well as i s possible ela ion o
he Roman mili a y camp in Kabyle.
This olume b ings oge he s udies on he se -
lemen ’s in es iga ion, including he exca a ion and
su ace su ey, as well as indi idual a icles dealing
wi h di e en aspec s o he se lemen exis ence
and ma e ial cul u e.
Pe a Tušlo á An assis an p o esso a he Ins i-
u e o Classical A chaeology a Cha les Uni e si y
in P ague. She has been wo king on di e en a chae-
ological p ojec s in he Balkan peninsula since 2008
including Bulga ia, No h Macedonia, and Romania.
He main in e es s lie in he Roman and La e An ique
Th ace, wi h special ocus on he po e y; as well as
in he echnology o po e y making and ce amic
pe og aphy.
Ba bo a Weisso á An assis an p o esso a he
Ins i u e o A chaeological S udies a he Ruh Uni-
e si y in Bochum, Ge many. She has been wo king
on exca a ions and su eys since 2006, aking pa
in p ojec s in Bulga ia, No h Macedonia, Tu key and
I aly. He main in e es s include digi al a chaeology
wi h a ocus on he applica ions o geog aphic in o -
ma ion sys ems (GIS), me hods o spa ial analyses
and quan i ica ions as well as designs o a chaeo-
logical su eys.
S e an Baka dzhie The di ec o o he Region-
al His o ical Museum in Yambol, and chie assis an
p o esso a he Uni e si y o Lib a y S udies and
In o ma ion Technologies in So ia. His main in e es
is he egional a chaeology o sou h -eas e n Bulga -
ia wi h aspecial ocus on he Roman o Middle Age
pe iods. He is adi ec o o long - e m a chaeological
exca a ions in Kabyle (Roman pe iod) and Voden
(Middle Ages).

ISBN 978–80–7671–068–9
THE YURTA-STROYNO ARCHAEOLOGICAL PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
Pe a Tušlo á – Ba bo a Weisso á –
S e an Baka dzhie (eds.)
THE YURTA-STROYNO
ARCHAEOLOGICAL
PROJECT
S udies on he Roman Ru al Se lemen in Th ace
The Yu a-S oyno A chaeological P ojec in es i-
ga ed a Roman u al se lemen loca ed along he
middle s eam o he Tundzha Ri e , in sou h-eas
-
e n Bulga ia (Roman p o ince o Th ace). The main
objec i es o he p ojec we e he de e mina ion
o he habi a ion dynamics o he se lemen , he
in es iga ion o i s a chi ec u al appea ance and
gene al unc ion, as well as i s possible ela ion o
he Roman mili a y camp in Kabyle.
This olume b ings oge he s udies on he se -
lemen ’s in es iga ion, including he exca a ion and
su ace su ey, as well as indi idual a icles dealing
wi h di e en aspec s o he se lemen exis ence
and ma e ial cul u e.
Pe a Tušlo á An assis an p o esso a he Ins i-
u e o Classical A chaeology a Cha les Uni e si y
in P ague. She has been wo king on di e en a chae-
ological p ojec s in he Balkan peninsula since 2008
including Bulga ia, No h Macedonia, and Romania.
He main in e es s lie in he Roman and La e An ique
Th ace, wi h special ocus on he po e y; as well as
in he echnology o po e y making and ce amic
pe og aphy.
Ba bo a Weisso á An assis an p o esso a he
Ins i u e o A chaeological S udies a he Ruh Uni-
e si y in Bochum, Ge many. She has been wo king
on exca a ions and su eys since 2006, aking pa
in p ojec s in Bulga ia, No h Macedonia, Tu key and
I aly. He main in e es s include digi al a chaeology
wi h a ocus on he applica ions o geog aphic in o -
ma ion sys ems (GIS), me hods o spa ial analyses
and quan i ica ions as well as designs o a chaeo-
logical su eys.
S e an Baka dzhie The di ec o o he Region-
al His o ical Museum in Yambol, and chie assis an
p o esso a he Uni e si y o Lib a y S udies and
In o ma ion Technologies in So ia. His main in e es
is he egional a chaeology o sou h -eas e n Bulga -
ia wi h aspecial ocus on he Roman o Middle Age
pe iods. He is adi ec o o long - e m a chaeological
exca a ions in Kabyle (Roman pe iod) and Voden
(Middle Ages).

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