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Sarmizegetusa Regia

Coordinates: 45°37′19″N 23°18′33″E / 45.6219°N 23.3093°E / 45.6219; 23.3093
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For the former Roman Dacia capital, see Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa. For the modern-day commune, see Sarmizegetusa (commune).
Sarmizegetusa Regia
Ruins of Dacian temples
Sarmizegetusa Regia is located in Romania
Sarmizegetusa Regia
Shown within Romania
Alternative nameDacian capital, Sarmisegetusa, Sarmizegethusa,[1] Sarmisegethusa, Sarmisegethuza, Sarmageze,[1] Sarmategte,[1] Sermizegetusa,[1] Zarmizegethusa,[1] Zarmizegethousa,[1] Zarmizegetusa,[1] Zermizegethouse
LocationGrădiștea de Munte, Hunedoara County, Romania
Coordinates45°37′19″N 23°18′33″E / 45.6219°N 23.3093°E / 45.6219; 23.3093
Altitude1,030 m (3,379 ft)
History
Abandoned2nd century AD
EventsTrajan's Dacian Wars, Battle of Sarmizegetusa
Site notes
Archaeologists
ConditionPartially reconstructed
Reference no.906
Reference no.HD-I-s-A-03190 [2]

Sarmizegetusa Regia, also Sarmisegetusa, Sarmisegethusa, Sarmisegethuza, Ζαρμιζεγεθούσα (Zarmizegethoúsa) or Ζερμιζεγεθούση (Zermizegethoúsē), was the capital and the most important military, religious and political centre of the Dacians prior to the wars with the Roman Empire. Erected on top of a 1200 m high mountain, the fortress, comprising six citadels, was the core of a strategic defensive system in the Orăştie Mountains (in present-day Romania).

Sarmizegetusa Regia should not be confused with Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa, the Roman capital of Dacia built by Roman Emperor Trajan some 40 km away, which was not the Dacian capital. Sarmizegetusa Ulpia was discovered earlier, was known already in the early 1900s, and was initially mistaken for the Dacian capital, a confusion which led to incorrect conclusions being made regarding the military history and organization of the Dacians.[3]

Ethymology

Several hypotheses have been advanced to explain the origin of the name Sarmizegetusa. The most important of these ascribe the following possible meanings to the city's name:

  • ‘Citadel built of palisades on a mountain peak’ from zermi (*gher-mi ‘mountain peak, top’, cf. *gher ‘stone; high’) and zeget (*geg(H)t)[4]
  • ‘City of the warm river’ from zarmi ‘warm’ (cognate with Sanskrit gharma ‘warm’) and zeget ‘flow’ (cognate with Sanskrit sarj- in sarjana- ‘flow’ and Bactrian harez- in harezâna ‘id.’), the city being named after the nearby river Sargetia[5]
  • ‘Palace illuminating the world of life’ from zaryma ‘palace’ (cf. Sanskrit harmya ‘palace’), zegeth ‘world of life’ (cf. Sanskrit jagat- ‘go’, and jigat- ‘mobility; world of life’) and usa ‘illuminating, enlightening; burning’)[6]
  • ‘Capital/royal city of the Sarmatians and the Getae’ (in Latin, literally SARMIS-ET-GETUS-A (dative case) REGIA)

Layout

Map of the site

Sarmizegetusa Regia contained a citadel and residential areas with dwellings and workshops as well as a sacred zone.

  • The fortress, a quadrilateral formed by massive stone blocks (murus dacicus), was constructed on five terraces, on an area of almost 30,000 m².
  • The sacred zone — among the most important and largest circular and rectangular Dacian sanctuaries – includes a number of rectangular temples, the bases of their supporting columns still visible in regular arrays. Perhaps the most enigmatic construction at the site is the large circular sanctuary. It consisted of a setting of timber posts in the shape of a D, surrounded by a timber circle which in turn was surrounded by a low stone kerb. The layout of the timber settings bears some resemblance to the stone monument at Stonehenge in England.[7]
  • An artifact referred to as the “Andesite Sun" seems to have been used as a sundial. Since it is known that Dacian culture was influenced by contact with Hellenisitic Greece, the sundial may have resulted from the Dacians' exposure to Hellenistic learning in geometry and astronomy.[7]
  • Civilians lived below the citadel itself in settlements built on artificial terraces, such as the one at Feţele Albe.[8] A system of ceramic pipes channeled running water into the residences of the nobility.

The archaeological inventory found at the site demonstrates that Dacian society had a relatively high standard of living.

History

Variants of the Name of the City

Zarmizegethusa Regia on Dacia's map from a medieval book made after Ptolemy's Geographia (ca. 140 AD).

Historical records show considerable variation in the spelling of the name of the Dacian capital:[9]

Pre-Roman era

Towards the end of his reign, Burebista transferred the Geto-Dacian capital from Argedava to Sarmizegetusa.[10][11] Serving as the Dacian capital for at least one and a half centuries, Sarmizegethusa reached its zenith under King Decebal. Archeological findings suggest that the Dacian god Zalmoxis and his chief priest had an important role in Dacian society at this time.[12] They have also shed new light on the political, economic and scientific development of the Dacians and their successful assimilation of technical and scientific knowledge from the Greek and Romans.

The site has yielded two especially notable finds:

  • A medical kit, in a brassbound wooden box with an iron handle, containing a scalpel, tweezers, powdered pumice and miniature pots for pharmaceuticals[13]
  • A huge vase, 24 in (0.6 m) high and 41 in (1.04 m) across, bearing an inscription in the Roman alphabet: DECEBAL PER SCORILO, i.e. ‘Decebalus, son (cf. Latin puer) of Scorilus’ [13]
Roman Dacia and Moesia Inferior.

The smithies north of the sanctuary also provide evidence of the Dacians' skill in metalworking: findings include tools such as meter-long tongs, hammers and anvils which were used to make some 400 metallic artefacts — scythes, sickles, hoes, rakes, picks, pruning hooks, knives, plowshares, and carpenters' tools [14] — as well as weapons such as daggers, curved Dacian scimitars, spearpoints, and shields.[14]

Nevertheless, the flowering of Dacian civilization apparently underway during the reign of Decebalus came to an abrupt end when Trajan's legions destroyed the city and deported its population.[14]

The defensive system

The Dacian capital’s defensive system includes six Dacian fortresses — Sarmizegetusa, Costești-Blidaru, Piatra Roșie, Costeşti-Cetățuie, Căpâlna and Băniţa. All six have been named UNESCO World heritage sites.

Roman era

Sarmisegetusa's walls were partly dismantled at the end of First Dacian war in AD 102, when Dacia was invaded by the Emperor Trajan of the Roman Empire. The Dacians rebuilt them, but the Romans systematically destroyed them again in 106 and deported the inhabitants.[14]

The Roman conquerors established a military garrison at Sarmisegetusa Regia. Later, the capital of Roman Dacia was established 40 km from the ruined Dacian capital, and was named after it - Colonia Ulpia Traiana Augusta Dacica Sarmizegetusa.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Dana, Dan; Nemeti, Sorin (2014-01-09). "Ptolémée et la toponymie de la Dacie (II-V)". Classica et Christiana. p. 18. Retrieved 2014-03-30.
  2. ^ "National Register of Historic Monuments in Romania, Hunedoara County" (PDF). www.inmi.ro. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2012. Retrieved 18 October 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ Schmitz (2005) 3
  4. ^ Russu 1944, p. 376-399.
  5. ^ Van Den Gheyn 1885, p. 176.
  6. ^ Tomaschek 1883, p. 410.
  7. ^ a b Ruggles 2005, p. 370.
  8. ^ MacKendrick 1975, p. 60-61.
  9. ^ Ptolemy's maps of northern Europe: a reconstruction of the prototypes, Gudmund Schütte , H. Hagerup, 1917
  10. ^ MacKendrick 1975, p. 48.
  11. ^ Goodman & Sherwood 2002, p. 227.
  12. ^ Matyszak 2009, p. 222.
  13. ^ a b MacKendrick 1975, p. 65.
  14. ^ a b c d MacKendrick 1975, p. 66.

References

  • Schmitz, Michael (2005). The Dacian threat, 101-106 AD. Armidale, N.S.W. : Caeros Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9758445-0-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Tomaschek, Wilhelm (1883). "Les Restes de la langue dace" in "Le Muséon, Volume 2". Belgium: "Société des lettres et des sciences" Louvain, Belgium. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Ruggles, Clive L. N (2005). Ancient astronomy: an encyclopedia of cosmologies and myth. Greenwood: ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-85109-477-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • MacKendrick, Paul Lachlan (2000). The Dacian Stones Speak. UNC Press Books. pp. 60–61. ISBN 978-0-8078-4939-2. Lwt5Li_q2asC&pg=PA60.
  • Van Den Gheyn, Joseph (1885). "Populations Danubiennes" in "Revue des questions scientifiques". Belgium: "Société scientifique de Bruxelles". {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Goodman, Martin; Sherwood, Jane (2002). The Roman World 44 BC–AD 180. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-203-40861-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Russu, I.I. (1944). Sarmizegetusa, capitala Geto-Dacilor. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help).
  • Daicoviciu, Hadrian (1972). "Dacia de la Burebista la cucerirea romană",. Editura Dacia. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Matyszak, Philip (2009). The Enemies of Rome: From Hannibal to Attila the Hun. Thames and Hudson. ISBN 978-0-500-28772-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

Further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sarmizegetusa Regia.

Plans, surveys

  • „Plan TOPO 2D", 2D topographical plan of the archaeological site of Sarmizegetusa Regia (v.1), source files .DWG, .PDF
  • „Plan TOPO 3D", 3D topographical plan of the archaeological site of Sarmizegetusa Regia (v.2), source files .DWG, .PDF

3D reconstructions

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