Timacum Minus (, also known as ) is archeological site located in Ravna,

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

. Site was declared

Monument of Culture of Great Importance Immovable Cultural Heritage of Exceptional Importance ( sr, Непокретна културна добра од изузетног значаја/) are those objects of Immovable cultural heritage that enjoy the highest level of state protection i ...

in 1979, and it is protected by

Republic of Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hung ...

. Timacum Minus is the oldest military fort in the

Timok Valley The Timok Valley ( sr, Тимочка Крајина, Timočka Krajina; bg, Тимошко, Timoshko; ro, Valea Timocului) is a geographical region in east-central Serbia around the Timok River. The Timok Valley corresponds to parts of two Serbi ...

, eastern Serbia.

Geography

Timacum Minus and its counterpart ''Timacum Maius'' (near

Svrljig Svrljig ( sr-cyr, Сврљиг, ) is a town and municipality located in the Nišava District of the Southern and Eastern Serbia, southern Serbia. According to 2011 census, the town has a population of 7,553 inhabitants, while the municipality has ...

) are located in the

Timok The Timok ( Serbian and Bulgarian: Тимок; ro, Timoc), sometimes also known as Great Timok ( sr, Велики Тимок, Veliki Timok; ro, Timocul Mare), is a river in eastern Serbia, a right tributary of the Danube. For the last 15 k ...

river valley. The area is surrounded by a hilly landscape with many mountain ranges which traverse the region. The location of Timacum Minus was on the Roman route

Lissus Lissus or Lissos ( el, Λίσσος) could be: * Lissus (Crete), an ancient Greek city in Crete * Lissos (Illyria), an ancient city in Illyria, the present day city of Lezhë in Albania * Lissus, a river in Thrace Thrace (; el, Θράκη ...

- Naissus-

Ratiaria Ratiaria (or: Raetiaria, Retiaria, Reciaria, Razaria; bg, Рациария; el, Ραζαρία μητρόπολις;) was a city founded by the Moesians, a Daco-Thracian tribe, in the 4th century BC, along the river Danube. In Roman times it w ...

. Trade routes from the Balkans coalesced in the Naissus region. Timacum Minus is located 60 km northeast of Naissus.

History

Timacum Minus was a strategic location for the Romans Empire. The region of Naissus was the center of the trade network from the north-south and west-east axis in the Balkans. In the areas near Naissus extensive mining activity was promoted by the Roman administration which necessitated the establishment of permanents forts, road networks and administrative facilities. Legio V Macedonica and IV Scythica, followed by a small auxiliary force from cohors I Thracum Syriaca. The road network began to develop and other military camps were built in this early period: ''Timacum Mais'' (

Niševac Niševac is a village in the municipality of Svrljig, Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and ...

), ''Timacum Minus'' (Ravna) and ''Combustica'' (Kladorub). During the reign of

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good ...

, cohors I Thracum Syriaca was replaced with the newly founded cohors II Aurelia Dardanorum, formed by the local population of the province of

Moesia Superior Moesia (; Latin: ''Moesia''; el, Μοισία, Moisía) was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans south of the Danube River, which included most of the territory of modern eastern Serbia, Kosovo, north-eastern Alban ...

. In this period, ''latrones Dardaniae'' (Dardanian brigants) were active in the area of Timacum Minus. The deployment of c. II Aurelia Dardanorum marks the building of the first permanent military base in Timacum Minus, around which the urban settlement developed. Permanent military deployment coincided with mining development and large-scale road construction. The archeological site is located SE from a small village of Ravna, north from

Knjaževac Knjaževac ( sr-cyr, Књажевац, ) is a town and municipality located in the Zaječar District of the eastern Serbia. As of 2011, the municipality has a population of 31,491 inhabitants, while the town has 18,404 inhabitants. The town is si ...

, near White Timok River. Fortress and nearby village was dated in 1st century AD, and last up until Justinian's restoration of the empire in 6th century. Only few kilometers away from the fortress, on the slope of the Slog hill, two Roman necropolis were found, with numerous findings and burial gifts (jewelry, ceramic and glass vessels, money, etc.). Archeological findings from this site are mostly presented in the County Museum of Knjaževac and as well in the archeo- ethno park on site, where

Lapidarium A lapidarium is a place where stone (Latin: ) monuments and fragments of archaeological interest are exhibited. They can include stone epigraphy, epigraphs; statues; architectural elements such as columns, cornices, and acroterions; bas reliefs ...

is formed.

Gallery

References

Sources

* *

External links

Timacum Minus - Ravna (English)

* ttp://www.travel.rs/sr/srbija/zanimljivosti/timacum-minus Serbia Travel - Timacum Minus
www.Wikimapia.org - Ravna, Timacum Minus
Moesia Moesia Superior Roman sites in Serbia Archaeological Sites of Great Importance (Serbia) Former populated places in Serbia Late Roman military {{Cultural-Heritage-stub