Jan Bartek – AncientPages.com – Archaeologists excavating at the Roman site in Spain have discovered the region’s intriguing amulet. It’s a rare, fossilized trilobite, a representative of an extinct marine arthropod species with an oval, flattened body.
Computer simulations of the Armea trilobite specimen mounted for use as a personal ornament. a‒b, Leather bracelet with the trilobite attached via a central hole, sewn to an additional leather piece on the reverse (detail in b). c‒e, Different views of the same specimen, set in a banded pendant of silver or another metal. Source
It is believed that this amulet, after modification, was worn in ancient Rome in the form of a bracelet or pendant, “likely serving as an amulet with magical or protective properties.”
Humans have been collecting fossils since the Paleolithic era, but trilobite remains are relatively rare findings.
They were previously discovered in Western Europe, North America, South Africa, and Australia. Now, researchers report the eleventh trilobite found in the Roman settlement (dating from the 1st–3rd century CE) of A Cibdá of Armea, Ourense, Spain.
It is the first confirmed trilobite-based jewelry known from ancient Rome and the third globally known to have been collected by people over a thousand years ago, a new study states.
Also, ancient Romans were interested in fossils. According to the Roman historian Suetonius (c. AD 69 – after AD 122) Emperor Augustus, who ruled from 27 BC to 14 AD, imported fossils from Greece and excavated on the island of Capri, where he established the first palaeontological museum at his villa to display the bones of ancient ‘giants’ and ‘monsters’ for curious visitors.
It is believed that this fossilized trilobite likely belonged to one of its residents or the family serving as unique petrified remains of an ancient animal with protective functions. In this case, the family member carried it as a personal object.
Photographs and interpretation of Colpocoryphe sp., the Ordovician trilobite found in the Armea Roman settlement. Image source
Near the location where the artifact was found, a partially preserved inscription with the word ‘MAXSIMVS’ was uncovered on a courtyard wall. This discovery may indicate the existence of a domestic altar, and the trilobite may have been functioning as a votive offering.
Additionally, the research team excludes a nearby origin of the trilobite specimen within the Roman province of Gallaecia. However, the Armea specimen’s distinctive physical and chemical changes “allow us to determine its probable origin with a certain degree of confidence. These features suggest a distant source and indicate that the specimen was deliberately transported to the Armea settlement during Roman times.
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Written by Jan Bartek – AncientPages.com Staff Writer
