DEBELT, BULGARIA—Archaeology in Bulgaria reports that an intact gold earring has been discovered in what was a room of the public bath at Deultum, a Roman colony founded in the first century A.D. by veterans of Augustus’ Eighth Legion near Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast. The artifact matches earrings shown in the second-century A.D. mummy portraits of several elite Roman women, according to archaeologist Krasimira Kostova of the Debelt Archaeological Preserve. The public bath house where the earring was recovered was destroyed by a major earthquake in A.D. 357, trapping the lost ornament in the rubble. “This jewel is extremely sophisticated,” Kostova said, explaining it suggests that the women of Deultum followed Rome’s fashion trends. To read about a Roman soldier's military diploma that was found at the site, go to "World Roundup: Bulgaria."
