5 May 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

A 2000-year-old bronze military diploma was discovered in Turkey’s Perre ancient city

During excavations in the ancient city of Perre, located in the southeastern Turkish province of Adiyaman, archaeologists uncovered a bronze military diploma dating back 2000 years.

Perre, which was one of the five largest cities of the Commagene Kingdom, also preserved its importance in the Roman period. Excavations in the ancient city of Perre started in 2001. Continuing in intervals, the excavations unearthed a historical Roman fountain, large blocks of stones, water ducts, and various architectural structures this year.

Amid the ongoing studies, a military diploma was recently found inscribed on a bronze plate. It was reported that the bronze diploma was given in 123 A.D.

With the help of ancient history and languages expert professor Mustafa Hamdi Sayar, the text was translated and it was determined that the plate was a military diploma.

A photo of the military diploma found in the ancient city of Perre, Adıyaman, southeastern Turkey
A photo of the military diploma found in the ancient city of Perre, Adıyaman, southeastern Turkey. Photo: AA

“In the translation of the diploma, which is in the form of a bronze plate, it was identified that Calcilius Antiquus, who had served in the military for 20 years in Syria, was granted Roman citizenship and the right to marry,” Adıyaman Museum Director Mehmet Alkan said.

“We found a bronze plate when we were about to finish the excavations in the ancient city of Perre. Its translation revealed that the bronze plate was a military diploma. It was written in Latin, and we saw that the person named Calcilius Antiquus served in the Syrian state for 20 years, and therefore, it was a diploma in which he was given Roman citizenship and the right to marry at the same time. We saw that this diploma was given in 123 A.D. during the reign of Emperor Hadrian,” he added.

Alkan said that there is information that 100,000 diplomas were printed, adding, “It is said that 100,000 copies of these diplomas were printed in the world. However, we learn that there is information about most of them being melted in furnaces. It is known that there are 800 of these diplomas in the world and more than 650 of them have been studied. It is an exciting development that the last of these ones was found here. With the discovery of this diploma, our excavation ended this year.”

Perre was an important city for religious and geopolitical reasons. The beauty of the city’s water was even mentioned in ancient Roman sources, however, Perre lost its importance after the Byzantine Period and never regained its former glory.

Related Articles

Excavations in and around Yazıkaya, one of the monumental works of the Phrygians, start again after 71 years.

23 July 2022

23 July 2022

Archaeological excavations at Midas Castle in Yazılıkaya Midas Valley in the Han district of Eskişehir, located in northwest Turkey, will...

Drone Mapping Reveals Shockingly Huge Size of 3,000-Year-Old Caucasus Settlement

11 January 2025

11 January 2025

Using drone mapping, an academic from Cranfield University in the UK has revealed that Dmanisis Gora, a 3,000-year-old mountainside fortress...

Ancient tomb chamber discovered in north China

3 January 2022

3 January 2022

Archaeologists have unearthed a tomb with a stone outer coffin dating back to the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534) in north...

Rare textiles and dwellings discovered in the submerged Neolithic settlement near Rome

6 June 2023

6 June 2023

Underwater archaeologists have discovered rare, well-preserved textiles, basketry, and cordage from the early Neolithic period in an area near Rome,...

A Royal Legacy? The Discovery of a Monumental Longhouse from the 3rd Century in Norway

2 February 2025

2 February 2025

Archaeologists have made a groundbreaking discovery at Øvre Eiker near Oslo, Norway unearthing a longhouse that surpasses any known structures...

A unique find in the Middle Don: Scythian gods on a silver plate

19 November 2021

19 November 2021

Archaeologists of the Archaeological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, during their excavations at the Devitsa V cemetery in...

Archaeologists Discovered “Temple of the Emperors” in the Agora of the Ancient City of Nikopolis, Greece

30 May 2024

30 May 2024

The Greek Ministry of Culture declared that fresh discoveries had been made during archaeological excavations at the ancient Nikopolis Agora...

Recent Excavations Unveil Five Remarkable Statues, Shedding Light on Perge’s Roman Heritage

12 February 2025

12 February 2025

During the excavations in the ancient city of Perge in Antalya, one of the most organized Roman cities of Anatolia,...

‘Roman numerals’ discovered on Stone of Destiny ahead of King Charles III coronation

8 April 2023

8 April 2023

New research has revealed previously unrecorded markings that appear to be Roman numerals on the Stone of Destiny, considered one...

Traces of Pozzolan Dust from Phlegraean Fields Found in a 1st-Century Roman Hydraulic Structure Submerged in Venetian Lagoon

29 November 2024

29 November 2024

In the San Felice Canal, in the northern Venetian Lagoon, a material used as an additive in Roman concrete was...

Perre Ancient City Set to Revive Its 1,800-Year-Old Grape Mill

26 January 2025

26 January 2025

In Perre, one of the five major cities of the Kingdom of Commagene, ancient production methods will meet today’s technology....

New Research Links Climate Crisis to the Fall of the Roman Empire

11 April 2025

11 April 2025

A study led by scientists at the University of Southampton, in collaboration with Queen’s University Canada and the Chinese Academy...

Evidence of the oldest hunter-gatherer basketry in southern Europe discovered in Spanish Cave

29 September 2023

29 September 2023

A team of scientists has discovered and analyzed the first direct evidence of basketry among hunter-gatherer societies and early farmers...

Ritualistic Dog Burials Associated with the Goddess Gula Unearthed at the Harran Archaeological Site in Southeastern Türkiye

15 December 2024

15 December 2024

Excavations at the Harran archaeological site in Şanlıurfa, one of the world’s oldest settlements and listed on UNESCO’s Temporary World...

2,600-year-old Terracotta Pipeline found in India

11 August 2024

11 August 2024

During the 10th phase of archaeological excavations at the Keeladi archaeological site in Tamil Nadu, India, archaeologists uncovered a terracotta...