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Qasr Al Hallabat, one of the Kingdom's so-called desert castles, a series of fortresses built by the Romans around the 2nd century to cement their presence in the Levant, is much more than the average castle, according to archaeologist and Spanish aid specialist Ignacio Arce. Arce, who has been working at the site since 2002, said the castle provides a missing link between the end of the Roman Empire's influence in the region and the Umayyad civilisation, a 100-year gap that has previously been left unaddressed... Arce was puzzled when he found evidence of restoration work on the mosaics within...

Ancient Roman road found in Netherlands By TOBY STERLING, Associated Press Writer Fri Jan 5, 3:19 PM ET AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - Archaeologists in the Netherlands have uncovered what they believe is part of the military road Roman soldiers patrolled nearly 2,000 years ago while guarding against hostile Germanic tribes at the Roman Empire's northern boundary. Known in Latin as the "limes," the road was in use from roughly A.D. 50 to A.D. 350, before it fell into disrepair and eventually disappeared underground, said archaeologist Wilfried Hessing, who is leading the excavations in Houten, about 30 miles southeast of Amsterdam. The...

The walls stand up to 20 feet tall. It was built at the start of the 4th century AD, as part of defensive works for a limes Arabicus, and held a cavalry unit of perhaps 120-150 men. The building inscription survives:Optimis maximisque principibus nostris Caio AurelioValerio Diocletiano Pio Felici Invicto Augusto etMarco Aurelio Valerio Maximiano Pio Felici Invicto Augusto etFlavio Valerio Constantio et Galerio Valerio Maximianonobilissimis Caesaribus Castra Praetorii Mobeni fossamentisAurelius Asclepiades praeses provinciae Arabiaeperfici curavit.Which tells us that the fort was called Mobene, and was constructed by the Praeses of the province of Arabia, a chap named Aurelius Asclepiades,...

The Limes Africanus refers to a series of fortifications and defensive lines that delineated the southern border of the Roman Empire in Northern Africa. There is no supporting text to propose that each of the Limes operated as a singular or coordinated defensive line, nor was the North African Limes ever referred to as Limes Africanus by the Romans (modern invention).The Limes served to protect the coastal provinces from raids by the native peoples of the Sahara, and to control trade through taxation of goods that came from Sub-Saharan Africa.Unlike the Limes in other parts of the Empire that had...

Archaeologists have identified three undiscovered Roman fortified camps across northern Arabia.The University of Oxford school of archaeology made the discovery in a remote sensing survey, using satellite imagery.It said it could be evidence of an "undocumented military campaign" across south east Jordan into Saudi Arabia.Dr Michael Fradley, who led the research, said: "We are almost certain they were built by the Roman army.In the report, published in the journal Antiquity, he explained his conclusion was based on the "typical playing card shape of the enclosures with opposing entrances along each side".Dr Fradley added that the westernmost camp was significantly larger...

We covered Roman frontiers in Britain, Jordan, Egypt, and the Neverlands... We thought its time for the largest one; the Rhine frontier! It is often said that Augustus founded and built the Roman border with the Rhine, that he installed stone forts along it, and that it was an unshakable border meant to repel any invasion. This video aims to dispel the above myths and shed some light on Roman borders. It wasn't one emperor who built it, it took decades for the wooden forts to slowly become permanent stone ones, and the border was very dynamic network that shifted...

It is a major public sector building project which has been delayed, causing headaches for bosses and the public. But it is decapitated skeletons and 2000-year-old forts rather than red tape and swelling costs that have caused the hold-up for the new health centre in Musselburgh... significant Roman remains were discovered... human remains, the bones of horses and weapons and culinary tools. Archeologists there said the "unique" finds, among the most impressive ever discovered in Scotland from that period, will help build a picture not only of Roman activity in Musselburgh from 140AD, but improve the wider understanding of life...

Archaeologists have found more than 600 relics from a huge battle between a Roman army and Barbarians in the third century, long after historians believed Rome had given up control of northern Germany. "We have to write our history books new, because what we thought was that the activities of the Romans ended at nine or 10 (years) after Christ," said Lutz Stratmann, science minister for the German state of Lower Saxony. "Now we know that it must be 200 or 250 after that." For weeks, archeologist Petra Loenne and her team have been searching this area with metal detectors,...

In the course of an educational dig in Gernsheim in the Hessian Ried, archaeologists from Frankfurt University have discovered a long lost Roman fort: A troop unit made up out of approximately 500 soldiers (known as a cohort) was stationed there between 70/80 and 110/120 AD. Over the past weeks, the archaeologists found two V-shaped ditches, typical of this type of fort, and the post holes of a wooden defensive tower as well as other evidence from the time after the fort was abandoned. An unusually large number of finds were made. This is because the Roman troops dismantled the...

Aerial Image of the foundation of a Roman stone building. Length of the leveling staff (White) at the upper edge of the Picture: 5 meters. Credit: Dennis Braks ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- During their first Gernsheim dig last year, Frankfurt University archaeologists suspected that a small Roman settlement must have also existed here in the Hessian Ried. Now they have discovered clear relics of a Roman village, built in part on the foundations of the fort after the soldiers left. This probably occurred around 120 AD. At the time the cohort (about 500 soldiers) was transferred from the Rhine to the Limes, and...

Archaeologists have discovered a road in Utrecht that led to the Traiectum fortress in Roman times, which was built about 2,000 years ago on the site of the current Domplein. The discovery was made last week during archeological research in connection with upcoming construction work, the municipality of Utrecht reported on Wednesday. According to the municipality, the find is “of great importance for our knowledge of Roman Utrecht and the border community around it.”The northern border of the Roman Empire went straight through the Netherlands, past the Rijn River. Part of these so-called limes (the Latin word for border) was...

According to an Associated Press report, construction workers renovating a soccer field in the Simmering neighborhood of Vienna uncovered an ancient mass grave containing as many as 150 bodies, probably those of soldiers killed during a violent clash between the Roman army and Germanic tribes. It is the earliest evidence of fighting between the two groups along the Roman Empire's northern frontier. At least one skeleton was confirmed to belong to a Roman soldier and further testing is slated to determine the identities of the other combatants. All of the individuals, who were male and between the ages of 20...

US Customs and Border Protection officers seized nearly two tons of marijuana packed in phony limes near the Texas-Mexico border last week, according to authorities. The 3,947 pounds of weed came through a commercial shipment of key limes in Pharr, Texas, on Jan. 30, officials said. The truck hauling the "produce" crossed the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge along the Texas-Mexico border near the Gulf of Mexico. Over 34,000 of the fake fruit packages were discovered by an imaging inspection system and narcotics K-9 team.

L.A. bars laugh in the face of the Mexican drug cartels this Cinco de MayoYou’d think in light of The Great Lime Crisis of 2014, bartenders would have to get Iron-Chef creative to prepare for the margarita-thirsty masses heading their way this Cinco de Mayo. But surprisingly, apart from a few spots that have developed workarounds or shifted focus to lime-less alternatives, many bars and restaurants are not letting limited limes stop them from celebrating the holiday the way they want: with massive margarita drink specials. Here’s how L.A. bars are handling the holiday—with or without limes. Petty Cash: The...

Romans may have learned from Chinese Great Wall: archaeologists The construction of the Roman Limes was quite possibly influenced by the concept of the Great Wall in China, though the two great buildings of the world are far away from each other, said archaeologists and historians. Although there is no evidence that the two constructions had any direct connections, indirect influence from the Great Wall on the Roman Limes is certain, said Visy Zsolt, a professor with the Department of Ancient History and Archaeology of the University of Pecs in Hungary. Visy made the remarks in an interview with Xinhua...

LEMOORE, Calif. (KFSN) -- An everyday piece of fruit is being blamed for causing severe burns on five young girls in the South Valley. The burns cover much of their bodies. The five little girls were simply enjoying a summer day in the backyard pool when they decided to make a lime and lemonade stand, little did anyone know that the lime juice would be so dangerous. --SNIP-- The diagnosis was phytophotodermatitis. The Mayo Clinic says it's caused by a photosynthesis inducing chemical in the lime and other fruits, plants and vegetables.

<p>Editor's Note: Making cocktails is straightforward to some, a mystery to others. That's why the Wine section today begins a regular column on the ins and outs of mixing perfect drinks -- all with a dose of fun. Author Gary Regan is a widely recognized expert on spirits and is writing this column exclusively for The Chronicle. .</p>