The Roman fort Halmyris lies near the mouth of the Danube Delta in southeastern Romania, surrounded by agricultural fields about 30km west of the Black Sea coast. The modern village of Murighiol is 3km away to the northwest, and the regional centre of Tulcea is 40 minutes by car. Halmyris has a busy occupation history of over 1300 years; the Geto-Dacians first inhabited the area around the 6th cen
tury BCE, followed by the Greeks (hence the name), and lastly the Romans, from the 1st - 7th centuries CE. The Romans called the site Salmorus—they constructed the fort which was one in a series of fortified locations along the south bank of the Danube. They intended these forts to function as a provincial defense system against the ongoing Dacian threat in Moesia Inferior. They eventually expanded the site to include a trading post, harbor, and civilian settlement. The Romanian Institute of Archaeology has conducted an ongoing excavation of Halmyris since 1983, focusing on areas such as the two basilicas, bathhouses, northern gate, western gate, three towers (out of 13 total), and general interior of the fort. Halmyris was one of the most important forts in this area as it guarded and monitored all traffic through the Danube coming in from the Black Sea (an area frequented in antiquity). Because of this strategic location, the fort housed a strong military presence consisting of a squadron of the Roman fleet (Classis Flavia Moesica) and of a 400-500 strong legionary detachment. Later on it was also the base of operations of the Cuneus Equitum Arcadum, a 300 strong cavalry formation. The Romans abandoned the fort in the reign of Heraclius (7th century CE), following the withdrawal of military forces from the entire province. Recent finds could suggest a date of occupation to the 10th century CE. In 2001, archaeologists discovered a crypt in one of the basilicas, which contained the actual and unspoiled remains of two saints, Astyon and Epictet, who martyred at the fort on July 8th, 290 CE. In recent years, the Romanian Orthodox Church has held a pilgrimage for the saints on July 8th at a nearby monastery. The adjacent civil settlement is equally significant. By the 3rd century CE ancient sources mention it as a "civitas" (city) which confirms a population of more than 5,000 people. It eventually became the seat of the local bishopric; by the 4th century it is mentioned as one of the region's 15 most important cities (in the company of Tomis, Callatis, Histria, Olbia and Charax). Gradiometric surveys have confirmed that the civil settlement alone occupied an area of more than 30 hectares suggesting a population of more than 8,000. The area has not been excavated, but surface findings (including 3500 coins) hint to its potential. The dig falls under the auspices of the Romanian Ministry of Culture and the Institute of Archaeology (Vasile Parvan) in Bucharest. The current principal investigator of the site, Prof. Zahariade, has been working on Halmyris for almost 30 years, joined by Dr. John Karavas after 2006. PhD student Emily Hanscam is the current Site Manager and Project Coordinator and has been working at Halmyris since 2011.
