Provincializing Roman Dacia: The Canadian–Romanian Apulum Roman Villa Project, 2018–2019

Abstract

The Apulum Roman Villa Project (ARVP) examines the “provincialization” and “de-provincialization” of Roman Dacia through the archaeological micro-history of a villa site at Oarda-Bulza, just outside one of the provincial capitals at Apulum. As one of the first villas in Dacia to be excavated scientifically and from multidisciplinary perspectives, the site promises to shed new light on the interplays among forms of production, cultural consumption, community formation, and incorporation into a host of new imperial networks (economic, military, and social). Aerial, geophysical, and pedestrian surveys undertaken in 2018 allowed identification of four major buildings within an enclosure: an elite residential structure; a productive zone that also seems to have housed its own community; and two storage buildings. Additionally, traces of Early and Late Iron Age occupation have been identified on site. The surveys also point to the ongoing potential of the site for future excavations.