Buciumi, Romania (archaeological site)

The Roman fort at Buciumi was part of Porolissum's defense network. Located near the headwaters of the Agrij River, soldiers stationed at this fort protected a pass through the Meses Mountains leading to the modern town of Crasnea, a territory that lay beyond the border of the Roman Empire. The fortress measures 150 x 128 meters and would have housed a few hundred soldiers and all necessary supplies. Niculae Gudea excavated key areas of the complex in the 1960s in order to define its extent and identify the location of the principia. Much of the fortress is unexcavated and very little has been investigated outside the fort.

The fort was constructed according to a standard plan with four gates, a principia near the center, barracks, and storage areas. The porta praetoria (main gate) is located on the south side. While the chronologies are not precise, it appears to have been first constructed in stone during the reign of Antoninus Pius and later rebuilt under an early Severan emperor. Brick stamps and a small number of inscriptions indicate that Cohort II Nervia Brittonum and Cohort I Augusta (Ituraeorum) were stationed here. To the east of the fortress are the remains of a small bath complex.
(composed 2015 for website of Transylvania Alive Association for Cultural Heritage) 

 

Buciumi fortress (photos Eric De Sena, 2015)