Multidisciplinary research of the topography and landscape of Roman Rider (Danilo, Šibenik)
Leading institutions: Institute of Archaeology, Institute of Archaeology of Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw, Šibenik town museum
Directors: dr. Ana Konestra, dr. hab. Fabian Welc, prof. UKSW, Toni Brajković, senior curator
Theme: Environment and cultural landscapes
Duration:
The Roman site of Danilo comprises several locations within Danilo field, the hill Gradina and its slopes, with the most important, that is, best researched being that at Stari šematorij (Old cemetery), though prehistoric and Roman remains connected to the community of the Riditae spread on a much larger area. Nevertheless, except of Stari šematorij, these locations have never been systematically explored thus the layout, spread and organisation of the Roman town - municipium Riditarum - and its environs are mostly undetermined. Moreover, at both Stari šematorij and elsewhere, substantial evidence dating to the early Middle Ages has been ascertained. Despite extensive archaeological research in the second half of the 20th c., topography of Roman Rider and its relationship to the pre-Roman site at Gradina, just as its possible later use, are still insufficiently documented.
Through a collaboration between the Šibenik town museum, the Institute of archaeology of Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw and the Institute of Archaeology in Zagreb a programme of integrated multidisciplinary research of the area of Danilo field and Gradina hill has been implemented, aiming at defining landscape features, spread of the ancient structures and the relationship between the hillfort and the later Roman municipium. In fact, within the foreseen activities attention will be devoted to understanding the landscape as both a frame within which pre-Roman and Roman Rider developed and its role in the later development of settlement, but also to evaluate the impact of environmental factors on the preservation of ancient structures and their detection possibilities, which is key in developing methodological and research strategies. Usage of non-destructive, remote sensing and geoarchaeological methods - aerial imaging, LiDAR, geophisical prospection (GPR and magnetometry), geological drilling, field walking and GIS analysis - should allow documenting of the wider Danilo area with the aim to correlate settlement and landscape, just as to unravel settling features from the period of first use of the Gradina hillfort and throughout Antiquity and late Antiquity. Research results should thus provide a more precise image of the archaeological heritage of the area and allow to design new research avenues, but also aid in the sites' valorisation and presentation.
Joint field research campaigns carried out since 2019 have already allowed to collect a varied dataset implemented within GIS, alongside which digitalisation of previously collected field documentation and finds analysis have been initiated.
Publications:
Konestra, A., Welc, F., Brajković, T., Lipovac Vrkljan, G., Androić Gračanin, P., Multidisciplinarna istraživanja topografije i krajolika antičkoga Ridera (Danilo, Šibenik) – Pilot kampanja 2019. godine, Annales Instituti Archaeologici, XVI,
