Marisia - Maros Megyei Múzeum Évkönyve 30/1. (2010)
Articles
Women in a Mans World? Female Related Artefacts from the Camps of Dacia 137 mentioned, that the camp from Buciumi is one of the few camps from Dacia where barracks have been excavated in their entirety and the finds were recorded with their exact findspots. Porta Porta Barrack Barrack Barrack Barrack Building 3 Building 4 Via praetoria principalis no- ^ n0- ^ no- 2 no. 4 sagularis sinistra Fig. 6. Distribution of female related artefacts inside the camp. Tire not so numerous artefacts, dated mostly to the 3rd century AD, related to women have a very interesting distribution pattern (Fig. 6; PL 6). It is striking that the majority of the objects is concentrated in the area of the barracks, especially in barrack no. 5.44 This large concentration of objects reflects that possibly the main activities of women were linked to this place. Another considerable amount of these artefacts can be found in the latus praetorii dextrum, in the buildings related to the officer’s accommodation,45 which could have belonged to women from the officer’s entourage. The rest of the objects were found in the communication area of the fort, in the tower of the entrance gates (porta praetorian,46 porta principalis sinistra47 48) and on via praetoria48 and via sagularis.49 Most of the artefacts connected to women were found within barrack no. 5 (PL 4/1). This archaeological feature is very interesting for several reasons. This construction dated to the 3rd century AD, having four fireplaces identified among waste material refers to multiple workshop activities (bronze working, iron working, bone working).50 It raises the question whether this barrack was used for accommodation purposes, or in fact it was a workshop for producing articles that satisfied the inner demands of the troops. All the categories of objects related to women coming from this fort meet here inside the barrack. We find here articles of jewellery (especially glass beads, PL 4/5-6 and hairpins, PL 4/7-8), dress accessories (brooches, PL 4/2-3) as well as objects connected to textile manufacturing (spindle whorls, PL 4/4).51 The association of spindle whorls with brooches and jewellery articles would be too much of a coincidence to regard the former as simply products of a local workshop as N. Gudea 4,1 Chirilä effli. 1972, 61, nr. 2, 3, 5; 88, nr. 8; 89, nr. 12; 90-91, nr. 1-12; 91, nr. 15; 92, nr. 1, 6, 9, 6. 45 Chirilä et al. 1972, 91, nr. 2, 7, 9, 1, 16; 92, nr. 5, 8, 10. 46 This spot is represented only by a bead, Chirilä et al. 1972, 91, nr. 17, Taf. IX/61. 47 Only a spindle whorl was recovered from this spot, Chirilä et al. 1972, 61, nr. 1, Taf. CXIX/2. 48 Chirilä et al. 1972, 92, nr. 3., Taf. C/2. 49 Gudea-Bajusz 1991, 97, nr. 98.12, PI. XII/12. 50 Chirilä et al. 1972, 124; Gudea 1997, 29, 70-71. 51 Chirilä et al. 1972, 90-91, nr. 1-12, 15, Taf. XCVII/1-12; XCVIII/2 (glass beads); 92, nr. 1, Taf. XCIX; nr 6, Taf. C/5; nr. 2, Taf. CII/2 (hairpins); 88, nr. 8; Taf. XCII/4; 89, nr. 12, Taf. XCII/4 (brooches); 61, nr. 2, 3, 5, Taf. CXIX, 3, 4 (spindle whorls).
