In November 2014, while digging a hole for a septic tank on his property in Ritopek, Mr Rajko Obradović found the remains of an ancient grave. Immediately after, Belgrade City Museum conducted an archaeological investigation of the grave,...
moreIn November 2014, while digging a hole for a septic tank on his property in Ritopek, Mr Rajko Obradović found the remains of an ancient grave. Immediately after, Belgrade City Museum conducted an archaeological investigation of the grave, which had already been exposed before the archaeological team’s arrival.
Discovered at the relative depth of 3.5m, the grave was east-west oriented. It was built of bricks and stones bonded with earth mortar. The inner sides of the grave walls were levelled and rendered with lime mortar, while the external sides were constructed very roughly. A roof construction was not found. The construction, 2.5m in length, narrows in a west-east direction, so that the western end of the grave is 1.4m wide, while the width of the eastern end is 1.1m. Two deceased persons were discovered lying on the floor of the grave. According to the position of the bones, it can be assumed that they were holding hands. Based on the morphological characteristics, it was determined that they were a male (maturus) and a female (senilis I). Regarding the finds, in the soil fill of the grave, only fragments of a bowl were found. The rough construction of a grave, its irregular dimensions and the materials used, suggest that the grave was built very quickly, probably immediately before the burial. Based on analogous examples and the bowl found, the grave can be dated to the IVth century.
During the excavations, residents of Ritopek donated many artefacts made of ceramics, metal and stone to the Museum. Among others, these include a lamp with a relief of a horse head, a bowl decorated using the barbotine technique, a palette, a sickle, a fibula and a few bricks with stamps. The chance finds were dated to the period from the Ist to the IVth century AD.
Considering the fact that no systematic archaeological research has been carried out in Ritopek, and that the Roman castrum of Castra Tricornia, together with a settlement, existed in this territory near Danube, these chance finds and the excavated double grave are precious, as they confirm a continuity of life in this territory during the ancient period.
Keywords: Ritopek, Castra Tricornia, grave, brick with stamp, Castra Flaviana, Cohors I Bessorum
