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Archaeological Fieldwork | Formation processes | Roman and Late Antique Architecture | Material Culture Studies | Landscape Archaeology and the Ager Aguntinus
Landscape Archaeology and the Ager Aguntinus
A long-term goal is to integrate the surroundings of Aguntum to the fieldwork concept, which will help to characterize the economic foundations of the region. Archaeozoological data from the city Aguntum shows that the alpine region was especially suitable for sheep/goat farming and less appropriate for cattle farming. In the agricultural field, Roman barley cultivation has been proven. In the field of mining, the high importance of rock crystal for the local economy is evident. However, research on the Ager Aguntinus is still in its beginnings. Only a few settlements and villae are known, and Roman mining, indicated by the rich rock crystal finds, has not yet been directly proven. Landscape archaeology in the Ager Aguntinus is therefore continuing with our partners in and outside the University.
Geophysical Prospection at the Municipium Claudium Aguntum
Because of the geological and geomorphological structure of the area, Geophysical prospection in the municipium causes considerable difficulties. Prospection in 2010 revealed indications of various building structures, but these have not yet been confirmed, particularly in the area of the forum, where prospection data and actual excavation data are differing.
M. Auer / F. Bleibinhaus / M. Tschurtschenthaler / M. Unterwurzacher, Municipium Claudium Aguntum. Geophysikalische Prospektion auf geologisch schwierigem Terrain, ÖJh. 82, 2013 (2014), 7-21.
Geophysical Prospection in the Suburbs
In 2013, geophysical prospection at the suburb (East of the city walls) of Aguntum took place on behalf of the Federal Office for the Protection of Monuments (Bundesdenkmalamt). The building found structures indicate a continuation of the dense population already identified by E. Swoboda in this area. Currently, further research in the sense of excavation is not on the schedule. The aim is an extension of the prospection area for the understanding of the ancient city.
B. Zickgraf / N. Buthmann, Archäologisch-geophysikalische Prospektion auf dem Grundstück Nr. 190/1, Gemeinde Dölsach, Katastralgemeinde Stribach, Tirol, FÖ 52, 2013, D4499–D4513.
The city and its surroundings – the administrative area of the Municipium
To create the foundations for an intensification of the research at the Ager Aguntinus, in 2013/14 a survey of all Roman and Late Antique finds and features in Eastern Tyrol and parts of Carinthia and Southern Tyrol started. Supported by the TWF (Tyrolian Science Fund), the GIS-based survey was carried out in cooperation with Dr. Armin Heller, Institute of Geography at the University of Innsbruck.
M. Auer / Ch. Sperger, Das Umland von Aguntum. Eine GIS gestützte Kartierung kaiserzeitlicher und spätantiker Siedlungsplätze, in: M. Auer/H. Stadler (Hrsg.), Von Aguntum zum Alkuser See. Zur römischen Geschichte der Siedlungskammer Osttirol (Wiesbaden 2018).