The Roman fort in Ancient Hegra - lecture by Zbigniew T. Fiema

Name: The Roman fort in Ancient Hegra - lecture by Zbigniew T. Fiema
Start: 2026-03-05T15:00:00+01:00
End: 2026-03-05T15:45:00+01:00
Location: Wydział Archeologii Uniwersytet Warszawski

Schedule

Thu Mar 05 2026 at 03:00 pm to 03:45 pm

UTC+01:00

Location

Wydział Archeologii Uniwersytet Warszawski | Warsaw, MZ

Ancient Hegra (Madâ’in Sâlih in Saudi Arabia) was a Nabataean town on the Incense Route. Following the Roman annexation of the Nabataean Kingdom in 106 A.D., the town continued as a Roman provincial center. The excavations by the Saudi-French Mission revealed a fort (ca 85 x 65 m) located on the southern side of the town. The fort was constructed in early 2nd century A.D., and it featured perimeter walls, two gates, corner towers, a possible small bathhouse, and the barracks. Due to its small size, the fort probably functioned as a headquarters of the local Roman forces, including vexillationes of legio III Cyrenaica. Some soldiers from these detachments served as local stationarii. Probably, the fort was militarily abandoned by the end of the 3rd century but the civilian occupation continued in the 4th. The excavations provided a wealth of information and artifacts, including numerous ceramics (also the imported types), bronze objects, large number of coins, and two Latin inscriptions. Also included will be a brief presentation of 15 Latin and Greek military inscriptions found in Hegra. The fort in Hegra confirms the significant Roman presence in the northwestern part of the Arabian Peninsula.
Location: Faculty of Archaeology UW, room 2.09
Photo above: Emmanuel Botte