The “extensive and impressive” remnants of an ancient Roman military base, dated 1,800 years old, are being uncovered along an important stretch of brand new highway about 20 miles southeast of the tiered coastal city of Haifa, the third largest city in Israel. A legionary camp of this scale, which once housed thousands of soldiers, has never been found in Israel before and stands to make a splash in the Roman archeological arena.
With government infrastructure planners and archeologists working hand in hand, the ongoing roadwork steadily plugs along. Netivei Israel (the National Roads Company of Israel) continues working on the interchange at the junction of Road 66 and Road 65 in northern Israel, while the omnipresent excavations being overseen by the Israeli Antiquities Authority (IAA) strive to preserve ancient history hidden beneath the sand.
Just across Road 66 from the tel, at its feet, researchers from IAA mingle among several large, open, arched tents that partially shade their relatively new excavation site set amid dry, dormant wheat fields. They work to brush away sand and dirt from a more or less level plot paved with ancient, hand-carved stone.
As highway traffic bustles by them, Yotam Tepper, excavation director for IAA, and his team focus their attention on understanding how an ancient Roman military presence, the first of this scale ever excavated in Israel, once lived. The Roman force occupied this region from about 117–120 to 300 A.D., according to an IAA press release.
“Whilst Roman military camps are known in Israel, they are temporary siege camps, or small camps belonging to auxiliary divisions,” Mr. Tepper said in a statement. “None compares with the entire complex of the legionary base, as has been uncovered in the archaeological excavations ... next to the Megiddo Junction.”
In their endless quest for antiquities, Mr. Tepper and his team made their big discovery of a Roman military base not by accident. Working jointly with Matthew J. Adams, of the Jezreel Valley Research Project, the researchers surveyed the expansive wheat fields around Megiddo using cutting-edge ground-penetrating radar to detect the presence of stone ruins underground.
“The ancient building remains were not preserved to a height, as most of the building stones were removed over the years for reuse in building projects carried out during the Byzantine and Early Islamic periods,” Mr. Tepper said.
The technology, know-how, and military weapons—all bearing signs of Roman contrivance—are reflected in the footprint that the Roman Imperial military had in the region, according to Mr. Tepper. Such an architectural assemblage is sure to offer new insights into what life was like for those Roman soldiers once stationed here.
It’s also good for the local region and tourism, according to Eli Escusido, director of the IAA. Already recognized as a World Heritage site with one of the earliest Christian prayer halls in the world, Megiddo’s ability to attract visitors stands only to gain from having Israel’s one and only excavated Roman military base right across the road.
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