Roman Margum and Mediaeval town of Morava, situated on the Orasje site in
Dubravica at the confluence of the Velika Morava and the Danube, could not
have been analysed more thoroughly in the past because of the damage caused
by the river bed displacements and soil erosion on the one hand, and dense
vegetation growing on such a moist terrain on the other. Archaeological
research has so far failed to produce even a site plan. Available data on
this important site are contradictory to a considerable extent, so the
information one could obtain from the written and cartographic sources needed
to be confronted with the archaeological ones and, especially, those derived
from the recent LiDAR scanning of the terrain, conducted within the scope of
the Archaeo-Landscapes Europe Project. Among the most important plans of the
confluence area are those left by Marsigli in the 18th and Kanitz in the 19th
century. Felix Kanitz, the famous Balkan traveler, also provided us with a
textual description of his visit to the site in 1887. Our analyses of the two
plans have revealed a number of inaccuracies. Through analyses of the
obtaineded LiDAR scans, however, the preserved area of the two settlements
has been clearly demarcated, measuring 7-8 hectares, and the eastern edge of
the Roman agglomeration - presumed already in the course of the 2011
excavations - was confirmed. Most probably it was the eastern rampart of the
Roman fortification. Apart from this, the purpose of a canal stretching along
the whole plateau, and mentioned by Kanitz, has been established. Given that
to the east of the canal there was the presumably Roman rampart, and to the
west of it there were recently excavated ruins of Roman buildings, the canal
itself must have been of a more recent date. Bearing in mind the established
vertical stratigraphy of the site, we conclude that it was in fact a
Mediaeval defence trench. The topography of the nearby fort Kulic has been
studied as well. It is often believed that this fortification was originally
built in Roman times, but the analyses of DTM have shown the fort erected on
an embankment, round in shape, i.e. on the more elevated terrain in
comparsion to the largest part of the confluence area, where most of Roman
Margum and Mediaeval Morava has been wiped out by water. So the Kulic
fortification could have been originally erected only afterwords, i.e. in
Turkish times. There are some data from the written sources to corroborate
such a date, and we also know of two later accounts describing the 17th
century settlement in front of it. There has been no field confirmation so
far, but thanks to the results of LiDAR scanning one may observe the traces
of a small settlement south of the fortification, protected by a trench.
Use case 3: post accidental site remediation − CEA
