Peuce (Oct 2021)
New Data Concerning Roman ”Stepped Pit” Graves in Northern Dobruja
Abstract
The fortunate find of a partially complete funerary stele in a tumulus located between the villages of Stejaru and Vasile Alecsandri prompted an archaeological excavation during the fall of 1983. In the researched mound, preserved on a height of 1 m and with a diameter of between 25 and 28.5 m, 16 graves were identified, belonging to the so-called "stepped pit" type. Of those, 10 graves contained funerary offerings composed of ceramic eating and drinking vessels, as well as lamps and bronze military equipment pieces. The five discovered coins, minted between the reigns of Antoninus Pius (145-161) and Iulia Domna (211-217), determined the dating of this necropolis between the middle of the 2nd century and the beginning of the 3rd c. AD. Furthermore, in the perimeter of the burial mound we have also identified nine offering spaces outside the graves, containing small ceramic fragments from ritually-broken vessels. The majority of the artefacts were produced in Western Pontic workshops. This necropolis belongs to a sizeable Roman rural settlement located to the west.
