Thriving Local Settlement Uncovered Near Roman Legionary Camp

Archaeology Magazine ^ | April 10, 2025 | editors / unattributed

[SunkenCiv]

German archaeologists have unearthed a thriving local community located near a Roman camp far beyond the borders of the Roman frontier, La Brüjula Verde reports. The legionary camp of Anreppen was built along the Lippe River in the first century a.d. and occupied briefly as Rome attempted to expand its territory further into the province of Germania. Initial archaeological investigation eight years ago uncovered a single isolated farmstead near the camp, but recent excavations have shown that the settlement was far more substantial than originally thought. Several farmsteads have now been identified and archaeologists have recovered artifacts demonstrating that local communities interacted and traded with the Roman soldiers. They even maintained these contacts with the Roman world for centuries after the Romans withdrew from their territory. One striking artifact archaeologists found was a small engraved gem from a Roman ring depicting the god Mercury holding a money pouch in one hand and his caduceus in the other. Another unique find was a Roman iron knife with brass decorative details, which was curiously buried with the blade facing upward. Experts believe it may have been intentionally positioned this way for ritual purposes or perhaps to ward off evil. To read about the discovery of an intact wooden cellar in Frankfurt that was part of an ancient building in the Roman provincial town of Nida, go to "Cleaning Out the Basement."

[SunkenCiv]

Whew, big list.

The other GGG topics added since the previous digest ping, alpha:

• Beyond Doolittle: The Navy Role in the Doolittle Raid [15:16] [04/18/2025]
  • 8oth Anniversary Doolittle Raid [04/19/2025]
• Colossal squid filmed in ocean for the first time [04/16/2025]
  • After 100 Years Of Searching, A Live Colossal Squid Has Been Filmed For First Time [04/20/2025]
• John Wilkes Booth shoots Abraham Lincoln (160 years ago today) [04/14/2025]
  • AWFUL EVENT: President Lincoln Shot by an Assassin; The Deed Done at Ford's Theatre Last Night (4/15/1865) [04/15/2025]
  • Great Grandfather Brig Gen Henry L. Burnett's Memories of the Lincoln Assassination and Investigation [04/14/2025]
• Meet the man who has created an exact replica of a First World War trench that has been visited by thousands... after building one by his BACK GARDEN [04/13/2025]
  • Ceremony honors war correspondent killed during WWII [04/19/2025]
  • 105-year-old Pearl Harbor survivor throws out 1st pitch at AmFam Field [04/16/2025]
  • Oldest known Pearl Harbor survivor dies at 106 [04/14/2025]
• Scientists revive dire wolf species from 'Game of Thrones' in world's first known 'de-extinction' [04/17/2025]
  • Glenn unveils CIA's grim Dire Wolf conspiracy [04/09/2025]
  • Babylon Bee: Dire Wolves Extinct Again After New Dr. Fauci Experiments [04/08/2025]
  • Game of clones: Dire wolves reborn as Colossal unleashes world's first de-extinction [PIX! + VID!] [04/07/2025]
  • Scientists Revive the Dire Wolf, or Something Close [04/07/2025]
  • Ancient Humans, Dogs Hunted Mastodon in Florida: Early Dogs Helped Humans Hunt Mammoths [05/16/2016]
• The Shot Heard Round The World: The Arms & Events Of April 19, 1775 [04/19/2025]
  • Alexandria estate where George Washington once hunted listed for $10M [04/17/2025]
  • Battle of Lexington & Concord, 250th Anniversary [04/08/2025]
  • Battle of Lexington Renactment [04/19/2025]
  • Paul Revere's Ride [04/18/2025]
• Bone box of Jesus' brother discovered in Israel [04/13/2025]
• The Fighting Temeraire: Why JMW Turner's Greatest Painting Is so Misunderstood [04/17/2025]
• For Longer Life, Study Says Eat More Meat in Childhood -- But Go Green in Golden Years [04/18/2025]
• Four Dead in Five Seconds [16:35] [04/14/2025]
• Future of Historic Watsonville House in Limbo Amid Preservation Debate [04/15/2025]
• John Singer Sargent died 100 years ago today [04/14/2025]
• Medieval Books Were Covered in Exotic Sealskins [04/14/2025]
• New Study Shows Crows Can Recognize Geometrical Shapes [04/14/2025]
• The Origin of Easter Eggs and How They Became a Holiday Symbol [04/18/2025]
• Rare Wall Paintings Revealed at Tudor Hunting Lodge [04/14/2025]
• San Jose Police identify Suspect in 30-Year Cold Case [04/15/2025]
• Scientists Are Analyzing 4,000 Bricks To Unravel Secrets of an Ancient Roman Metropolis [Trier] [04/16/2025]
• 3,000-Year-Old Cave Paintings Discovered in Rio De Janeiro Park, Brazil [04/14/2025]
• Added from the FRchives:
  • The Birth Of A Tool. [12/07/2014]
  • The Rise of Islam and Damascus Steel (Vanity) [01/14/2003]
  • Secret's Out For Saracens Sabres (Damascus Steel) [11/15/2006]

[SunkenCiv]

The 'romanbaltic' and 'romangermany' keywords, sorted, edited:

• Roman Helmet Fragments From Denmark Studied [02/13/2025]
• 1,600-year-old Roman padlock with spring mechanism discovered in Germany -- and it's tiny [01/31/2025]
• Mysterious 1,800-year-old silver amulet discovered in Germany could rewrite the history of Christianity in Europe [3rd c AD] [12/16/2024]
• Ancient Engraved Amulet Could 'Turn Back History' of Christianity, Experts Claim [12/16/2024]
• Archeologists discover ancient Roman road leading to Domplein in Utrecht [12/15/2024]
• Roman Bronze Vessel Discovered in Poland [09/21/2024]
• 1,700-Year-Old Grave Uncovered in Germany [09/10/2024]
• Roman gold hoard suggests Nordic connection to network of European elite [04/09/2024]
• Rome's GENIUS border defense strategy | 3D modeling the Rhine frontier [18:55] [03/03/2024]
• Engraving on 2,000-year-old knife thought to be oldest runes in Denmark [01/25/2024]
• 2,300 Years Old First Complete Ancient Celtic Village and Roman Settlement Discovered in Munich [11/11/2023]
• Roman Coins Found on Island in Baltic Sea [04/17/2023]
• Does the artificial watercourse in the Hessian Ried have a Roman past? [04/09/2023]
• Ancient Viking treasure has oldest-known reference to Norse god Odin [03/08/2023]
• The ancient golden treasure rewriting Danish history [07/19/2022]
• Oldest Roman body armour found in Germany [10/24/2020]
• Archaeologists Find Roman Iron Age Board Game in Norway [06/13/2020]
• Farmer Finds Roman Treasure Trove Scattered Across Field [Poland] [04/08/2020]
• Restorers discover shield fragment is 1,700 years old, making it the oldest German panel painting [11/03/2019]
• 1,800 Year Old Roman Inscription on Milestone East of the Kinneret Deciphered [05/01/2019]
• Thousands of objects discovered in Scandinavia's first Viking city [09/15/2018]
• This Golden Head Adds a Twist to Ancient Roman History [Waldgirmes, Germany] [08/23/2018]
• 'Spectacular' ancient public library discovered in Germany [08/01/2018]
• Bone trove in Denmark tells story of 'Barbarian' battle [06/02/2018]
• Archaeologist: We have evidence of the presence of Roman legionaries in Poland [05/28/2018]
• Archaeologists discover 'Roman Village' in Gernsheim [09/17/2015]
• Roman drunkard found on Danish island [01/16/2015]
• Village from the Roman period discovered in the Carpathians [09/21/2014]
• Hitting the jackpot on a dig in Gernsheim: Long lost Roman fort discovered [09/21/2014]
• Migration Period cremations unearthed in Poland [06/14/2014]
• Ancient Roman Military Camp Unearthed in Eastern Germany [05/18/2014]
• A Roman hoard from the end of empire [05/01/2014]
• New Iron Age Sites Discovered in Finland [Roman era] [01/11/2014]
• Treasure trove reveals Iron Age town [Sweden] [11/29/2013]
• German battlefield yields Roman surprises [05/13/2013]
• Roman military camp dating back to the conquest of Gaul throws light on a part of world history [09/15/2012]
• Two Iron Age Sites Discovered in Finland [09/03/2012]
• An Army Sacrificed in a Bog [ Alken, Denmark, 2K ago ] [07/11/2012]
• Students find rare Roman temple on practice dig [Poppelsdorf, Germany] [05/15/2012]
• Lost Roman camp that protected against Germanic hordes found [10/28/2011]
• New finds suggest Romans won big North Germany battle [ Maximinus Thrax ] [09/15/2010]
• Near Army construction site in Germany, a trove of ancient Roman artifacts [09/24/2009]
• 2,000-year-old statue of Emperor Augustus on horseback found in stream [08/27/2009]
• Gold-plated Roman horse head found (near Frankfurt) [08/27/2009]
• Ancient Roman battlefield excavated in Lower Saxony[Germany] [12/12/2008]
• Triumph of the Polish will [11/12/2007]
• Report: Ancient Roman graveyard found in suburban Copenhagen [10/11/2007]
• Crystal Amulet Poses Question On Early Christianity (Denmark - 100AD) [03/09/2007]
• Graves Hint At Contact With Romans (Sweden) [11/09/2006]
• Gibbon on global warming [07/29/2006]
• Buddha statue from 6th c found in Viking hoard in Helgo, Sweden [04/26/2005]
• From Hand-drag to Jumbo: A Millennium of Dredging [07/30/2004]
• The Romans in Ireland [07/18/2004]
• Keeping Up With The Empire (Romans In Netherlands) [05/25/2004]

[SunkenCiv]

The weekly digest links are up top.

[Lurker]

How did the thrivers react to being unearthed? Were they angry? Blinded by the sunlight after being under the earth all that time? Happy to see us above grounders?

L

[SunkenCiv]

LOL

[Red Badger]

Camp ‘followers’.........................

[SunkenCiv]

World’s oldest profession ain’t just an expression. :^)

The local population would produce goods and provide services for sale, so as long as the Roman troops were stationed there, the town would thrive. The fact that there is one shows the Romans were there quite a while.

I suspect that such places existed adjacent to all Roman forts, with the likely exception of some of the desert frontier forts, such as this one:

https://freerepublic.com/focus/chat/3836800/posts

[SauronOfMordor]

The Romans would also provide protection against bandits to the town.

[SunkenCiv]

Definitely.

[Cincinnatus.45-70]

Sort of like pawn shops and small used car lots outside of US military installations?

[Cincinnatus.45-70]

Neat knife. Thanks, SunkenCiv.

[SunkenCiv]

My pleasure. It’s in pretty nice shape as well. I love how the “must have been ritual” thing was tacked on though. :^)

[Cincinnatus.45-70]

Maybe there was context omitted that would have made that sound less silly, but...