A field trip to Kosovo took place in march 2011 in order to investigate the palaeoenvironmental history of Lipljan area with special focus on the ancient roman city of Ulpiana. The archaeological site is occupied by the Monastery at Gračanica in Kosovo ca. 10 km south of Priština. Ulpiana was founded on the remains of a large Bronze Age settlement and later on destroyed by the Gothic army of Theodoric in A.D. 479 (cf. Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites).
Until today, it seems unclear why people decided to settle at this particular location and how the past environmental conditions looked like under Roman rule. Quite likely, fertile grounds, adequate water supply and a favourable position at the crossroads of ancient trade routes led to Ulpianas prosperity. In order to unravel Ulpiana’s secrets, geophysical prospecting, terrestrial laser scanning and vibra coring were carried out.
A brief report (in german) about the excavation conducted by the German Archaeological Institute can be found here.
Surroundings of Lipljan with floodplain of Ulpiana in the mid-ground (view to the north towards Priština)
Excavation site of Ulpiana: an ancient tower has been unearthed in the vicinity of the basilica.
TerraScientia 