Arcobara (castra)

Arcobara ^[7] (previously identified as Arcobadara ^[8][9][10]) also known as Castra of Ilișua was a fort in the Roman province of Dacia in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD.^[2] It was unearthed in the village Ilişua (commune Uriu, Romania) in 1978.^[2] The fort was garrisoned by Ala I Tungrorum Frontoniana.^[11] On the site 27 stone ballista projectiles were discovered of diameters between 7 and 13.5 cm and weighing up to 2 kg^[12] indicating the presence of ballistarii.^[12]

Arcobara
The plan of castra.
Location within Romania
Known also as	Castra of Ilișua [1][2] Castra of Uriu
Founded	2nd century AD
Place in the Roman world
Province	Dacia
Administrative unit	Dacia Porolissensis
Administrative unit	Dacia Superior
Limes	Porolissensis
Directly connected to	Samum (Gherla)
Structure
— Stone structure —
Size and area	182 m × 182 m (3.3 ha)
— Wood and earth structure —
Size and area	140 m × 135 m (1.8 ha)
Stationed military units
— Legions —
vexill. XIII Gemina[3]
— Cohorts —
II Britannica[3]
— Alae —
I Tungrorum Frontoniana[4]
Location
Coordinates	47.210528°N 24.095361°E / 47.210528; 24.095361
Altitude	267 m (876 ft)
Place name	Platoul Măgura
Town	Ilișua
County	Bistrița-Năsăud
Country	Romania
Reference
RO-LMI	BN-I-s-A-01354[1]
RO-RAN	35303.02[2]
Site notes
Recognition	National Historical Monument
Condition	Ruined
Excavation dates	1836 [5] 1980 [6]
Archaeologists	Jozsef Torma[5] Karoly Torma[5] Dumitru Protase[6] Corneliu Gaiu[2]

History

Three phases of the castra are known:^[13]

1.The earth and timber fort was established.

2.Possibly during the early years of Hadrian's reign ala Tungrorum Frontoniana was stationed here, leading to an enlargement of the fort.

3.The last phase of the fort included a leveling of some of the previous buildings and fortifications and the construction of stone walls.

See also

• List of castra
• Limes Porolissensis

External links

• Roman castra from Romania - Google Maps / Earth Archived 2012-12-05 at archive.today

Notes

1. "Lista Monumentelor Istorice 2010 ("2010 List of Historic Monuments")" (PDF). Monitorul Oficial al României, Partea I, Nr. 670 ("Romania's Official Journal, Part I, Nr. 670"), page 472. Ministerul Culturii şi Patrimoniului Naţional. 1 October 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 June 2012. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
2. "Situl arheologic de la Ilişua - Vicinal". National Archaeological Record of Romania (RAN). ran.cimec.ro. 2012-07-22. Archived from the original on 19 December 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
3. "Ilisua". net4u.ro. Strateg Maps. Archived from the original on 12 November 2012. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
4. Adrian Bejan: DACIA FELIX - Istoria Daciei romane, Timișoara, 1998 Archived 2012-03-15 at the Wayback Machine
5. Corneliu Gaiu, Radu Zăgreanu: "Inscripţii şi piese sculpturale din castrul roman de la Ilişua", Ed. Accent, Cluj-Napoca, 2012
6. Bibliografia lucrărilor științifice ale membrilor Institutului de Istorie din Cluj (1920-2005)
7. Dana, Dan; Gaiu, Radu; Zăgreanu, Radu (2012). "Un nou duplicarius din ala I Tungrorum Frontoniana atestat pe un vas descoperit în castrul roman de la Arcobara/Ilișua". p. 56. Retrieved January 14, 2014.
8. Nemeti, Sorin; Bărbulescu, Mihai (2010). "Arcobadara". p. 11. Retrieved 2013-05-26.
9. Cristian Găzdac, Corneliu Gaiu, Elena Marchiş: "Arcobadara (Ilişua)", Ed. Mega Publishing House, Cluj-Napoca, 2011
10. "Intâlnire cu lumea romană ("Meeting with the Roman world")". Bistrita24.ro - la zi. 2011-03-24. Archived from the original on 2012-03-28. Retrieved 4 January 2013.
11. Nemeti, Sorin. "Piese de bronz roman de la Ilișua ("Roman bronze pieces from Ilişua")". Retrieved September 29, 2013.
12. Zăgreanu, Radu (2013). "Proiectile de piatră din castrul roman de la Arcobadara". Revista Bistriței. Editura Accent. p. 9. Retrieved April 10, 2014.
13. Țentea, Ovidiu; Teodor, Eugen (2006-01-01). Dacia Augusti Provincia. Crearea provinciei. p. 207.

47°12′34″N 24°08′24″E