Legio was a Roman military camp south of Tel Megiddo in the Roman province of Galilee.
Legio was a Roman military camp south of Tel Megiddo in the Roman province of Galilee.
Following the Bar Kokhba revolt (132-136 CE), Legio VI Ferrata was stationed at Legio near Caparcotna. [1] The approximate location of the camp of the Legio VI Ferrata was known from the persistence of its name in the form Lajjun by which a Palestinian village was known. It was close to the ancient town of Rimmon, perhaps the Hadad-rimmon of Zechariah 12:11, which in the 3rd century was renamed Maximianopolis by Diocletian in honor of his co-emperor Maximian. Both places were within a single episcopal see, generally called Maximianopolis, but in one list of such sees the name Legionum (genitive plural of the Latin word Legio) is used, where the Greek original has "Maximianopolis". [2]
Legio lies along Palestine's Via Maris, an ancient trade route linking Egypt with the northern empires of Syria, Anatolia and Mesopotamia in the early Bronze Age.
In 2002–2003, an archaeological survey was conducted in the Legio region by Yotam Tepper as part of his master's thesis. The survey located the legionary camp on the northern slope of El-Manach hill, the village of Ceparcotani on the adjacent hill, and the city of Maximianopolis on the site of the contemporary Kibbutz Megiddo. [3] In 2013 Tepper and the Jezreel Valley Regional Project dug test trenches measuring approximately 295 ft (90 m) by 16.5 ft (5.0 m) feet that revealed clear evidence of the camp. [4]
Aerial photography, satellite images, and high-resolution lidar data hinted that the hill known as el-Manach contained traces of artificial, human produced objects and structures. After this, slight depressions in the earth revealed the borders of the military camp itself. Long, linear indents that met at 90 degree angles were found on the north, south, and west side of the hill. [5] The following evidence led to the use of archaeological techniques to further discover the uncovered items at Legio.
Ground-penetrating radar was the primary technique used to uncover the findings at Legio. The technique involves using antenna frequencies and data-acquisition parameters to analyze what lay beneath the surface of a variety of different types of soil. This technique allows the user to analyze a wide range of land in a relatively efficient amount of time. [5]
No military headquarters of this type for this particular period had yet been excavated in the entire Eastern Roman Empire, and the 2013 excavations uncovered defensive earthworks, a circumvolution rampart, barracks areas and artifacts including roof tiles stamped with the name of the Sixth Legion, and fragments of scale armor. Coins were found during the excavation process. The coins were found to have countermarks on them showing the length of time the coins were in circulation. Decorative fibulae were also discovered in the Jezreel Valley.
In 2017, a monumental gate to the camp's headquarters, a stone mark and a dedicatory inscription were discovered that may be a listing of camp commanders or celebrated heroes of the Sixth Legion. In the camp's latrines, more than 200 Roman coins dating to the 2nd and 3rd centuries were found. Cremated human remains were discovered in a cooking pot. [6]
A study by Anastasia Shapiro was done on the Petrographic Examination of Tiles, Bricks and Mortar from Legio. [7] In Area B, ceramic tiles, tegulae roof tiles and square floor tiles, as well as bricks were uncovered. Eight tiles and two bricks were discovered bearing Roman legion stamps. Upon further analysis of these fragments, petrographic examinations indicate that all the sampled items are part of a homogeneous petrographic group. This matrix consists of calcareous fossiliferous clay containing some tiny, opaque stains of iron oxide and a small amount of silt, which comprises basalt-derived minerals. Some of the micro fossils have ferric or silica filling. Others being completely vitrified. Non-plastic material also makes up for about 2-18% of the volume of tegulae. This includes larger and smaller forms of basalt, quartz, chalk, fossil shells, and terra rosa.
In 2023, researchers from USC Dornsife announced the discovery of Legio's amphitheater following clues left behind by Gottlieb Schumacher. The team described it as "It’s the first Roman military amphitheater ever uncovered in the Southern Levant, which encompasses Israel, Jordan and Palestine." Among the findings was a rare gold coin of Emperor Diocletian. [8] [9]
The aqueduct was found on the southeast side of the hill, and drew its water from springs at Ain Kubbih. The aqueduct would then split in two directions heading towards Daher ed-Dar and flour mills in the Queni stream. The water provided by the aqueduct supplied the soldiers and legionnaires at Legio with a lasting supply of water. The structure allowed water from 124 meters above sea level to be sent to camps and cities. Without the aqueduct, the water would not be funneled to its desired locations in such an efficient time and process. Parts of the aqueduct remained exposed while a majority was covered in a layer of mud and other dumped pieces of earth. [10]
A number of fibulae were discovered in the Jezreel Valley, dating back to the second century AD. [11]
Megiddo is a kibbutz in northern Israel, built in 1949. Located in the Jezreel Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of Megiddo Regional Council. In 2021, it had a population of 859.
Tel Megiddo is the site of the ancient city of Megiddo, the remains of which form a tell, situated in northern Israel near Kibbutz Megiddo, about 30 kilometres (19 mi) south-east of Haifa, at the western edge of the Jezreel Valley. Megiddo is known for its historical, geographical, and theological importance, especially under its Greek name Armageddon. During the Bronze Age, Megiddo was an important Canaanite city-state. During the Iron Age, it was a royal city in the Kingdom of Israel.
The Jezreel Valley, or Marj Ibn Amir, also known as the Valley of Megiddo, is a large fertile plain and inland valley in the Northern District of Israel. It is bordered to the north by the highlands of the Lower Galilee region, to the south by the Samarian highlands, to the west and northwest by the Mount Carmel range, and to the east by the Jordan Valley, with Mount Gilboa marking its southern extent. The largest settlement in the valley is the city of Afula, which lies near its center.
The Bar Kokhba revolt was a large-scale armed rebellion initiated by the Jews of Judea, led by Simon bar Kokhba, against the Roman Empire in 132 CE. Lasting until 135 or early 136, it was the third and final escalation of the Jewish–Roman wars. Like the First Jewish–Roman War and the Second Jewish–Roman War, the Bar Kokhba revolt resulted in a total Jewish defeat; Bar Kokhba himself was killed by Roman troops at Betar in 135 and the Jewish rebels who remained after his death were all killed or enslaved within the next year.
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Legio VI Ferrata was a legion of the Imperial Roman army. In 30 BC it became part of the emperor Augustus's standing army. It continued in existence into the 4th century. A Legio VI fought in the Roman Republican civil wars of the 40s and 30s BC. Sent to garrison the province of Judaea, it remained there for the next two centuries.
David Ussishkin is an Israeli archaeologist and professor emeritus of archaeology.
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Lajjun was a large Palestinian Arab village located 16 kilometers (9.9 mi) northwest of Jenin and 1 kilometer (0.62 mi) south of the remains of the biblical city of Megiddo. The Israeli kibbutz of Megiddo, Israel was built 600 metres north-east of the depopulated village on the hill called Dhahrat ed Dar from 1949.
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Maximianopolis was an ancient city in Palaestina Secunda, within the Byzantine Empire. The name Maximianopolis was given to it by Diocletian, in honour of his co-emperor Maximian. It was located 17 M.P. from Caesarea and 10 M.P. from Jezreel. The town earlier bore the names Legio and Caporcotani.
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