Ancient Remesiana: a New Milestone from the Times of Severus Alexander (original) (raw)

2013, Journal of Ancient Topography

Remesiana (modern Bela Palanka in southeastern Serbia) 1 laid on the most important trans-Balkan land communication Singidunum-Viminacium-Naissus-Serdica-Constantinopolis, the via militaris, which is documented in four itineraries: Itinerarium Hierosolymitanum, Itinerarium Antonini, Tabula Peutingeriana, Ravennatis anonymi cosmographia. The significance of this road, as the shortest natural link between Europe and Orient, was recognized early, in proto-history and this ancient route has long been in use. 2 In Roman times, this route was a vitally significant military and trade communication. Many new settlements emerged along this route: mansiones, where one could spend the night, supply with food and other needs, the mutationes, inns and small landing where it was possible to change horses and carriages, and civitates, settlements, whose names are preserved in the Roman road maps (itineraries). The road started at the right bank of the Danube, connecting the legionary centres of Singidunum (Beograd) 3 and Viminacium (Kostolac), the capital of the province Moesia Superior, whence it continued southward, through the valley of Margus (Velika Morava River) 4 to Naissus (Niš) 5. Naissus was an important trading and military centre of the Roman province of Upper Moesia 6 , established early, in the times of the Roman conquest and received JAT XXIII (2013) * Institute for Balkan Studies of Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts. ** The article results from the Serbo-French Pavle Savić bilateral research project: "Middle Danube, Lower Sava and Central Balkans: land of anchor, land of passage from Ist to Vth century A.D", carried out jointly by the Institute for Balkan Studies and the Bordeaux-based Ausonius Institute, funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Devel opment of the Republic of Serbia and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the project of the Institute for Balkan Studies "Society, spiritual and material culture and communications in the prehistory and early history of the Balkans (no. 177012), funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Devel opment of the Republic of Serbia. 1 TIR K-34, Naissus: 108. 2 Travel writers from the 16 th century saw its remains as it is recorded in Anton Vrančić and Ghi