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at Moldova Nouă (iron, silver, lead, Sasca Montană (copper, lead, iron, gold),
Ciclova Română (iron). The most important discoveries come from Moldova Nouă,
from the Ogaşul Băieşului site. Here it was discovered an officina where the ore
was reduced in order to obtain metal. For now, it is the only place where special
arrangements for metallurgical purpose can be observed. The publication is
notclear enough in this respect. It doesnt appear very clear if it is an iron reducing
ore, lead, copper or for other metals. The way in which the buildings are arranged
at a distance from each other could suggest the existence of a centre for the mining
exploitation. We agree with this affirmation sustaining two points of view, first in
the near vicinity pits of extraction have been found, secondly the discovery of two
fragmented
tegulae
of Legio VII Claudia sustains once more the official character
of the building.
The discoveries made in rural settlements are of other origins, here iron
metallurgical facilities had small round shaped reducing installations that remind
the La Tène period. On the territory of a few rural central Banat settlements some
small installations of iron reduction ore have also been found. Such discoveries are
to be dated late closing 3
rd
and 4
th
centuries. They appear in many sites, as we may
selectively mention those from: Soşdea, Fizes, Reşita, Criciova etc.
One may notice the existence of jewelry workshops, where gold was krafted,
like the two centers from
Tibiscum
(with many 2
nd
and 3
rd
century workshops
)
or
even the one found at
Dierna
. The range of goods produced is difficult to descifre,
yet they offer from clothing accesoires to every day use jewelries (rings, necklaces,
bracelets etc.) Both,
Dierna
, and
Tibiscum
were placed on the main acces road to
the province and this could be the entering points of import product that could be
used as models, apart from the pieces on their own.
Commercial activity in south western Dacia was advantaged by a transit trade
towards the center of the north Danubian province, carried by local merchants. This
would explain the existence of very developed vican settlements like the one from
Praetorium
(Mehadia) and
Tibiscum,
bothe centers found near the main roads. It is
obvious that some trade concentration activities existed at Dierna, Tibiscum, Micia,
some of them urban centers, dating from the end of the 2
nd
century (as the case of
first two of them), having a large civilian population and suitable public administrative
service (checking points, headquarters of
conductores
etc.) This fact intensified the
economical relations with the barbarian world near
Dacia
. The latter type of trade
not only targeted the resources of raw materials such as salt, some metals, but also
the trade with amphorae of wine and oil,
terra sigillata
, Roman pottery, ornaments
of metal or glass (beads, enamel pieces, brooches etc.) All these artifacts appear in
the settlements archaeologically identified in autochtonous plain Banat area of plain
and even in Crişana.
The settlements in the southern West Dacia: villages, vici, towns
. Studying
ancient habitat was run much slower than in other areas of the province; this had
several causes objective or even subjective. That is why on ancient habitation in the
southwest of the province, the information about residential complexes or whole
settlements appears sporadic and largely sequential. The central place in Dacia was