2000 Year Old Roman Camp Found in Swiss Alps

17th November 2024

The site was found at 2,200m in the Oberhalbstein Alps near the Italian border.

Archeologists used laser technology to find a treasure trove of fortifications and artifacts, including arrowheads, slingshots and lead sling bullets bearing the stamp of the Roman 3rd Legion.

The researchers from the University of Basel and the Archaeological Service of Graubünden were studying a nearby Roman-era battlefield when a volunteer discovered the encampment in images from airborne Light Detection and Ranging.

Three ditches and a rampart stood out as the first evidence of the camp situated 900 metres above the battlefield where Roman legionaries and local Suanetes tribesmen fought in 15BC.

“The sensational discovery of a Roman military camp in Graubünden once again makes it clear that archaeological research into ‘Roman Switzerland’ continues to have great surprises in store,” said a translated statement from the Canton of Graubünden, an administrative region in eastern Switzerland.

“The discovery on the Colm la Runga is also outstanding because the advance of the Roman armed forces can now be precisely traced over several dozen kilometres.”

See here for more in Legion Magazine.

Switzerland. Image © PlanetSKI