Roman Settlement in Bulgaria Destroyed During Gothic Raids

LESICHOVO, BULGARIA—According to a La Brújula Verde report, construction workers installing a gas pipeline in Bulgaria’s Pazardzhik region accidentally unearthed a 1,700-year old rural Roman settlement. Archaeologists conducted further research and uncovered buildings with large storage jars embedded in the ground, suggesting the site served an agrarian function and was involved in food production and storage. During the Roman period, the settlement would have been strategically located along the Via Militaris, one of the main Roman commercial routes through the Balkans. A collection of silver coins dating to the third century a.d. were also recovered. However, evidence of fire indicates that the settlement was sacked and destroyed around this time, likely by marauding bands of Goths who ravaged the Roman province of Thrace during the reign of the emperor Decius (reigned a.d. 249–251). This discovery provides valuable information about the organization of rural settlements in Thrace during the late Roman period. Researchers said the recovered materials will help them better understand the economy, trade, and daily life of the settlement’s inhabitants. To read about the gravestone of a high-ranking legionary excavated at a settlement in northwestern Bulgaria, go to "A Dutiful Roman Soldier."