earth resistance area surveys             u. kiesow

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Monument type
Vicus, supplementary survey west of the current excavation

Survey data
Area investigated: 3800 m2
Resolutions: 4 Mp / m2 (a = 0.56 m)

Array configuration: Twin-probe
Measuring instruments: Lippmann 4point light MC
Imaging software: SURFER (Golden Software)
Survey period: 02.2019






Comments
A total of around 10,000 m2 of the vicus has already been excavated. To the east of this area, open to the public, from east to west along the Decumanus are: the market building, the forum square with three adjoining temples, the Cardo I, the Insula I with a craftsmen's quarter and parts of the Cardo II. The survey area connects to the west of the Cardo II. The interpretation of the measurement results can be subdivided into 8 sub-areas.





1. Decumanus
If the two boundary lines of the known Decumanus course, which are approx. 8m apart, are extended to the east, they show the presumed course of the Decumanus inside the survey area.
On the sides of this road, there are three long areas of higher resistance (2a). Presumably these areas represent the northern front of the Insula II and the southern front of the Insula III which lies north of the Decumanus. The appearance of the structures of Insula III is more massive compared to the front of Insula II because of its later reuse for the Byzantine fortification? (see below).
In the far west the Decumanus meets a vertical wall front (6) visible as an area of higher resistance (2b) and ends there. The Cardo III (5), which is about 5m wide, begins here and runs to the south. To the north, the Decumanus seems to widen into a small square (4).
The data of this street situation shows as a bright area, limited by straight lines (3), with no visible building structures on it.



2. Late Byzantine fortification
As already mentioned, the front (1) of the presumed Insula III north of the Decumanus shows a particularly pronounced resistivity. In front of this area, in the middle of the Decumanus, there is an area of high resistivity (3) that continues slightly weaker towards the east. Together with the Insula front it then forms an approximately 4.5m thick massive wall structure (5). Inside this wall there is a 12m long area (4) showing a low resistivity. Presumably the missing stone material of the collapsed double-shell fortification wall has probably slipped into the area of the massive bulky structure (3) leaving a huge gap (4) in the wall (Fig.05).


Further to the west, the wall has a square projection (tower foundation?) with a base area of approx. 5 x 5m (2). It is not clear whether such a foundation is also located at the opposite end of the section (6), since the mapped surface ends here and the visible compaction continues to the north (see Fig. 07).
About 60 m further to the east, on the excavated part of the Decumanus, a section of the late Byzantine wall has alteady been excavated. If one compares the dimensions of the prospected structure with the dimensions of the already excavated section, the almost identical dimensions leave little doubt that it is a continuation of the same structure.



3. North-Vicus

The Insula III, north of the Decumanus, of which only a small part was mapped in the survey, shows some clearly recognizable wall structures (1-9). However, an identification of individual buildings is not possible due to the small size of the area measured here. Because of the superposition of the Byzantine fortification?, the southern front of insula III does not stand alone and can no longer be identified .

The structures (6-9) that partly project into the presumed Cardo IV are probably to be assigned to a later superstructure. The transition from the Decumanus to the north towards the presumed Cardo IV seems to have originally been very wide at about 13m, possibly at first forming a square. It is unlikely that the Cardo IV will continue northward in this dimension.



4. Cardo III

The Cardo III runs between Insula II and the West-Vicus and is recognizable by the dark lines of the building fronts (1 and 5) that border it.

In its course to the south, after 24 meters a 3 m to 5 m wide disturbance (collapse debris?) crosses the road (2). However, the front of the Insula II is still clearly visible for another 15m (3), so that the Cardo III extends to a minimum length of almost 40m before the eastern border disappears.





5. West-Vicus

Apart from a few possible wall structures (4) running from north to south, a point-like densification (6) and a possible water pipe (8), there are hardly any clear structures behind the western border front of the Cardo III.

The anomalies (7) are due to a too small measuring distance to the edge of the older excavation area and are therefore meaningless.








6. Insula II

Insula II has two different areas at its front to the decumanus. In the generally brighter, less dense eastern part, some clear wall structures (1) can be seen, which can probably be assigned to a shop area due to their short extension of only 5 metres. Further south these walls show no recognizable continuation.

The western part of this front, as well as the west front have a much darker appearance, which extends to about the middle of the insula (2). This is a massive building site with several large structures (3-7):

Parallel to the front of the decumanus, an approximately rectangular, about 7m x 4m large strongly compacted area (3) is recognizable. It is possible that this is a partially preserved floor area.

To the east of it, at the border to the presumed shop area, a long rectangular room stands out (3a).

To the southwest is a smaller, barely compacted rectangular area (5) with the dimensions 4.5m x 2.5m. It is enclosed by a massive, also rectangular structure (4) with a thickness of 2m. The total area of this combination measures 8.5m x 5.5m and resembles a thick floor surface with a basin? in its centre.

To the south, another small area of low resistance measuring 5m x 2.5m is visible (6), which seems to join on to a semi-circular bulge. Again this structure could have the shape of a water basin?. The 2.5m x 2m measuring structure (8) east of it has a similar character and belongs to the ensemble of three low-resistance rectangular areas (5, 6, and 8) of this part of the insula.

Further south there is another, strongly compacted floor-area of 8m x 5.5m (7). Here the building complex seems to come to an end. It is then followed by a large area of low resistivity in which an approx. 1 m wide structure turning west is noticeable (9). It is very likely that this is a water conduct. More structures (10) that could also be suspected of being pipes can be seen in the bright area east of the building complex (18). Like the structure (9), they too seem to be heading in a south-westerly direction.

The overall high resistivity, the sizes and the arrangement of the structures, above all, the smaller rectangular presumed basin areas and the possible water-conducting anomalies make an interpretation of this part of insula II as a thermal complex likely but, (due to lack of experience on results of other thermal complexes) still uncertain.

An interpretation as a residential complex is also possible.

It is possible that the baths continue in findings 11 to 17. However, the noticeably compacted soil areas (22) have a less coherent structure.

At the northeast corner of areas 11 and 11a (room with floor), a connection between the two complexes could be assumed. Interpreted as a bath complex they could together form an inner courtyard (palaestra) in area 18.

The semicircular concentrations of collapse debris 16 and 17 could also indicate a bath architecture?, and the findings 13 - 15 could be additional basins?

Since the mapped area ends in the findings 12, 19, 20 and 21, their interpretation does not make much sense. The strong noise in the southernmost part of the measured area (23) is due to the modern, gravelled path. Here a connection and continuation of the findings 22a / 19 and 20 / 21 is recognizable.



7. Cardo II and 8. Insula I 

7. Cardo II
Two distinct lines (1) limit the slightly more compacted area of ​​the Cardo II. With a width (2) of 6 m, of which 2.5 m belong to the area of a portico on Insula I (3), the Cardo II is somewhat narrower than the excavated 8m wide Cardo I. The more dense surface layer of this street, runs clearly visible from north to south towards the end of the survey area (4), but is disturbed after 35m by a massive area of high resistance (5), which probably belongs to a later building. Whether the heavily compacted area (6) at the southern edge of the measuring area belongs to the same building is uncertain due to the omitted section in between.
Towards the Decumanus, at the northern end of the measuring area, another compacted area (7) can be seen, whereas the entire eastern front of Insula II towards Cardo II (8) only shows weak compaction but no interpretable remains of construction.

8. Insula I
The known orientation of the buildings of insula I is recognizable through vertical and horizontal areas of compaction, but there are hardly any interpretable structures (9). Only the western insula front in the lower part of the mapped area appears somewhat set back, which would mean that the Cardo II in its course widens to the east (10).