Roman Observation Tower Discovered in Morocco

RABAT, MOROCCO—Science in Poland reports that a Roman military observation tower has been discovered in Volubilis, a site in northern Morocco first occupied some 5,000 years ago, by a team of researchers led by Aomar Akerraz of Morocco’s National Institute of Archaeology and Cultural Heritage (INSAP) and Radosław Karasiewicz-Szczypiorski of the University of Warsaw. The tower, first spotted in satellite images, would have been located on the outskirts of the Roman Empire, explained archaeologist Maciej Czapski of the University of Warsaw. Similar towers have been uncovered in Scotland, Germany, and Romania, he added. The remnants of the tower include foundations and sections of wall standing about 31 inches tall, traces of an internal staircase, cobblestones on one side of the building, and poorly preserved tile fragments. The outer wall has not survived. “We found fragments of javelins, nails from sandals of Roman legionnaires, fragments of ornaments typical for Roman military belts,” Czapski said. The artifacts are thought to date to the end of the second century A.D., and the reign of Antoninus Pius. The research team members plan to look for additional towers in the area in an effort to understand how the Romans interacted with the local population and controlled the flow of goods along the border. To read about excavations of a medieval city in southern Morocco, go to "Letter from Morocco: Splendor at the Edge of the Sahara."