18 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

An amateur archeologist has discovered a Roman war site

Thanks to the insistence of an amateur archaeologist, a Roman battlefield in Switzerland has been identified.

Shortly before the birth of Jesus, there must have been a battle between Tiefencastel and the Cunter between Roman and Rhaetian troops. This is at least indicated by the many objects that researchers found in the area near Crap Ses Gorge in mid-September.

The research effort was triggered by a find two years ago. Lucas Schmid, an amateur archaeologist and volunteer of the Graubünden Archaeological Service, found a well-preserved Roman dagger on Julierstrasse. As a result, the University of Basel started a five-year research project with the federal government and the canton.

“It looks like the locals have holed up and were shot at by the Romans with slingshot and catapults,” Peter Schwarz, Professor of Provincial Roman Archeology at the University of Basel, told Swiss public broadcaster SRFExternal link.

Archaeologist Thomas Reitmaier says 7,000 out of a total of 35,000 square meters have been studied so far.

A slingshot with an inscription indicating the twelfth Roman legion's participation in battle. Photo: SRf
A slingshot with an inscription indicating the twelfth Roman legion’s participation in battle. Photo: SRF

“Among the objects found were hundreds of shoe nails, slingshots, coins, and fragments of a shield that could be assigned to a local,” said Thomas Reitmaier, who said they had found several hundred Roman artifacts in total.

The finds are assumed to have been left on the battlefield after a clash between Romans and a local tribe at around 15BC.

It is unclear how many people died in the war. Those responsible say no graves have been found so far.

The Roman dagger that Lucas Schmid found 2 years ago. Photo: SRF
The Roman dagger that Lucas Schmid found 2 years ago. Photo: SRF

To learn more, the researchers will continue to explore the area over the next year. Two weeks are scheduled for research for objects that give clues to what happened in the Bündner Valley nearly 2,000 years ago.

Although artifacts from the Roman period were found in the area about 20 years ago, experts were of the opinion that there was nothing to be found in the area. Lucas Schmid took a different view, went on a quest, and succeeded. So successful that research is now being conducted on a large scale.

Hobby archaeologist Lucas Schmid is delighted to have uncovered other objects two years ago: Of course, I’m glad that what I’m doing is making a difference” he said.

Cover Photo: Archäologischer Dienst Graubünden

Related Articles

Ancient golden neck ring found in Denmark

24 April 2022

24 April 2022

A one-of-a-kind golden neck ring from the Germanic Iron Age (400-550 A.D.) has been discovered in a field not far...

2,000-year-old stone faces and engravings emerge amid severe drought in Amazon

24 October 2023

24 October 2023

As a result of record-low water levels brought on by the region’s worst drought in over a century, faces carved...

Stone Age Loved to Dance to the Rhythm of the Elk Tooth Rattles

4 June 2021

4 June 2021

Thousands of years ago, people danced frequently and to the rhythm. This is the conclusion of the discovery of elk...

Archaeologists find an Anglo-Saxon church at Stoke Mandeville excavation site

13 September 2021

13 September 2021

Archaeologists working on the HS2 project found the remains of an Anglo-Saxon church during their excavations at the former St...

The 20-million-year-old fossil of a sea creature in the ancient city of Tyana may have been used as a means of payment

22 October 2021

22 October 2021

During the ongoing excavations in the ancient city of Tyana in the Kemerhisar district of Niğde, a 20-million-year-old fossil thought...

Hittite Royal Seal Warns ‘Whoever Breaks This Will Die’

7 July 2024

7 July 2024

During the excavations in Kırıkkale, a cuneiform seal used by the royal family during the Hittite Empire was unearthed. The...

Secrets of the Galloway Hoard Revealed

27 May 2021

27 May 2021

Experts have uncovered fascinating secrets of a Viking Age hoard discovered by a metal detector to be presented to the...

Who will solve the puzzle of Bronze Age tin? Origin of tin ingots from Uluburun shipwreck disputed – the metal may have come from Cornwall

3 October 2023

3 October 2023

The exact origin of tin in the Bronze Age is the Holy Grail of archaeometallurgists: For 150 years, experts have...

Remarkable Roman Villa Full of Strange Artifacts Discovered from a Bronze Age Site in England

3 April 2024

3 April 2024

Archaeologists have uncovered a “richly decorated” remarkable Roman villa complex during excavations at Brookside Meadows in Grove, a village in...

Urartian graves in eastern Turkey pointing out novel burial traditions

21 September 2021

21 September 2021

The excavations in Cavuştepe castle continue with the excavations in the necropolis this year. Two new tombs from the Urartian...

Beheaded croc reveals ancient family secrets

10 March 2022

10 March 2022

A missing link in crocodilian evolution and a tragic tale of human-driven extinction. The partially fossilized remains of a giant...

Saxon ‘London’ was Bigger Than Previously Believed

23 February 2024

23 February 2024

Archaeologists digging at the northern end of Trafalgar Square found evidence that Saxon London’s center was bigger and extended further...

4 Aztec child burials unearthed in Mexico and dated to the Early Colonial period may be indicators of Aztec resistance

6 July 2022

6 July 2022

During an archaeological rescue effort in Mexico City’s historic central district of La Lagunilla, the remains of an Aztec house...

Roman influence period artifacts discovered by history enthusiasts in northern Poland

16 March 2024

16 March 2024

Local history enthusiasts from the Wendrusz Historical and Exploration Society have discovered four fibulae, a ring, and fragments of decorations...

A Decorated Block with Decapitated Gaul Found for the First Time in Toul, France

22 July 2024

22 July 2024

A Corinthian-style carved block that was once part of the entablature of a monumental Gallo-Roman public building has been discovered...