Sucidava
Encyclopedia
Sucidava is a Dacia
n and Daco-Roman historical site, situated in Corabia
, Romania
on the north bank of the Danube
. There can be found: the first Christian
Basilica
in Romania
and the foot of a Roman bridge
over the Danube
built by Constantine the Great
to link Sucidava with Oescus
(today in Bulgaria
, in Moesia
); there is also a secret underground fountain which flows under the walls of the town to a water spring situated outside.
From archeological point of view the coins found at Sucidava show an uninterrupted series from Aurelian
(270-275) to Theodosius II
(408-450). The archeological evidence show that in AD 443 or 447 the city suffered from attacks of the Huns
, still the city was restored under Justin I
518-527 or Justinian I
527-565. Around 600, it seems that the Roman garrison abandoned the city.
Dacia
In ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range...
n and Daco-Roman historical site, situated in Corabia
Corabia
Corabia is a small Danube port located in Olt County, Romania, which used to be part of the now-dissolved Romanaţi County before World War II...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
on the north bank of the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
. There can be found: the first Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
Basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and the foot of a Roman bridge
Constantine's Bridge
Constantine's Bridge was a Roman bridge over the Danube. It was completed or rebuilt in 328 and remained in use for no more than four decades. With an overall length of 2437 m, 1137 m of which spanned the Danube's riverbed, Constantine's Bridge is considered the longest ancient river bridge and...
over the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
built by Constantine the Great
Constantine I
Constantine the Great , also known as Constantine I or Saint Constantine, was Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Well known for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, Constantine and co-Emperor Licinius issued the Edict of Milan in 313, which proclaimed religious tolerance of all...
to link Sucidava with Oescus
Oescus
Oescus, or Palatiolon Palatiolum, was an ancient town in Moesia, northwest of the modern Bulgarian city of Pleven, near the village of Gigen. It is a Daco-Moesian toponym. Ptolemy calls it a Triballian town, but it later became Roman...
(today in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, in Moesia
Moesia
Moesia was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans, along the south bank of the Danube River. It included territories of modern-day Southern Serbia , Northern Republic of Macedonia, Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja, Southern Moldova, and Budjak .-History:In ancient...
); there is also a secret underground fountain which flows under the walls of the town to a water spring situated outside.
From archeological point of view the coins found at Sucidava show an uninterrupted series from Aurelian
Aurelian
Aurelian , was Roman Emperor from 270 to 275. During his reign, he defeated the Alamanni after a devastating war. He also defeated the Goths, Vandals, Juthungi, Sarmatians, and Carpi. Aurelian restored the Empire's eastern provinces after his conquest of the Palmyrene Empire in 273. The following...
(270-275) to Theodosius II
Theodosius II
Theodosius II , commonly surnamed Theodosius the Younger, or Theodosius the Calligrapher, was Byzantine Emperor from 408 to 450. He is mostly known for promulgating the Theodosian law code, and for the construction of the Theodosian Walls of Constantinople...
(408-450). The archeological evidence show that in AD 443 or 447 the city suffered from attacks of the Huns
Huns
The Huns were a group of nomadic people who, appearing from east of the Volga River, migrated into Europe c. AD 370 and established the vast Hunnic Empire there. Since de Guignes linked them with the Xiongnu, who had been northern neighbours of China 300 years prior to the emergence of the Huns,...
, still the city was restored under Justin I
Justin I
Justin I was Byzantine Emperor from 518 to 527. He rose through the ranks of the army and ultimately became its Emperor, in spite of the fact he was illiterate and almost 70 years old at the time of accession...
518-527 or Justinian I
Justinian I
Justinian I ; , ; 483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was Byzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.One of the most important figures of...
527-565. Around 600, it seems that the Roman garrison abandoned the city.
Additional References
- Paul Lachlan MacKendrickPaul MacKendrickPaul Lachlan MacKendrick was an American classicist, author and teacher.He was born in Taunton, Massachusetts, but most of his productive years had been lived in Madison, Wisconsin....
, "The Dacian Stones Speak", Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina PressUniversity of North Carolina PressThe University of North Carolina Press , founded in 1922, is a university press that is part of the University of North Carolina....
, 1975. ISBN 0807812269 - Notitia DignitatumNotitia DignitatumThe Notitia Dignitatum is a unique document of the Roman imperial chanceries. One of the very few surviving documents of Roman government, it details the administrative organisation of the eastern and western empires, listing several thousand offices from the imperial court down to the provincial...
cca 395-413
External links
- Sucidava on Tabula PeutingerianaTabula PeutingerianaThe Tabula Peutingeriana is an itinerarium showing the cursus publicus, the road network in the Roman Empire. The original map of which this is a unique copy was last revised in the fourth or early fifth century. It covers Europe, parts of Asia and North Africa...
: http://www.euratlas.net/cartogra/peutinger/7_thracia/thracia_4_1.html "Archaeological Excavation Report" - Photo gallery
- Gabriel Vasile, "Analiza antropologică a unui schelet descoperit la Sucidava - Celei (judeţul Olt)", Cercetări Arheologice, 13/2006, at National Museum of Romanian HistoryNational Museum of Romanian HistoryThe National Museum of Romanian History is a museum on Calea Victoriei in Bucharest, Romania, which contains Romanianhistorical artifacts from prehistoric times up to modern times....
- http://www.threemonkeysonline.com/als/_sucidava_romania_eu_expansion.html
- Roman castra from Romania - Google Maps / Earth