Roman Colonization in Iberia

Late-Imperial Iberia
G-M406>FGC5089>M3302*

Archeological ID: P12478
Genetic ID:  I37210.TW
Location: Lucena Basilica, Cordoba, Spain
Address: Coracho Paleochristian Basilica, C. de la Industria, 14900 Lucena, Córdoba, Spain
Time Period: Late Imperial Roman  
Age: Infant [per archeological examination]
Archeological Age: AD 300-400
YDNA: G-M406>FGC5089>M3302
MDTNA: D4l
Coverage: 0.522319355
Global25:
Note: Lucena Basilica Family A:

Archeological Information from Supplementary
Genetic Identifier: I37210.
Grave Identifier: Burial 104, ind. 5 (infant)
Grave Type: Simple oval pit with multiple burials, an individual in a supine position without a skull, with the ossuary to the east, at the feet.
Orientation is E-W.
Skeletal information: Child, <12 years old, Undetermined sex.
Grave goods: no grave goods.
Dating: Archeologically dated to 300 – 400 CE.
Ancestry summary: Italy_Sicily_Punic_Roman__+__North_African_Punic.

Published: Disparate demographic impacts of the Roman Colonization and the Migration Period in the Iberian Peninsula

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Supplementary Information:
1.5 Córdoba, Lucena, Coracho Basílica

Contact person(s): Archeology: Daniel Botella Ortega. Anthropology: Juan Pablo Diéguez Ramírez & Ricardo Ortega

Brief settlement history: The archeological site consists of a martyrium basilica with different phases or cultural layers. It was founded during the Constantinian period, had changes during the Byzantine period, and was adapted for Mozarabic (Christians of Al-Andalus) rituals in the 6th-7th centuries. The site was aban5doned in the 8th century. It is surrounded by a large late-antiquity necropolis with burials in graves that are oriented from east to west. The graves may be covered with stones or flat or curved tiles, or they may have no covering at all. In some graves, the remains of several individuals have been found. The earlier bodies are often grouped either at the head or the feet of the most recently buried person. Few grave goods have been found (Diéguez-Ramírez, 2016).

Excavation History: The archeological work was carried out due to the construction of the A-45 highway between Lucena and Antequera. The site is located at the northern edge of the Lucena Sur Encinas Reales Norte section. Earlier, a surface survey was conducted in 2000, where this site was identified by the director of the project, Fernando Penedo Cobo. In March 2023, Francisca Casado Trenas and María Cabeza Liébana Sánchez were involved in the work. Due to disagreements in interpreting the findings between the excavation team and the municipal archaeology department of Lucena, the Provincial Heritage Commission of Córdoba, in a resolution issued in April 2004, authorized the relocation and reconstruction of the basilica remains on land provided by the Lucena City Council. This is where they can be seen today.

Geographic Information: The site is located in the southern area of the Lucena municipality, in a region called the "campiña alta cordobesa," the landscape consists of olive groves on Triassic marl and gypsum soils, shaped by the nearby Anzur River. The martyrium basilica and its associated necropolis were built on one of these rounded hills, very close to the old Benamejí road and east of the ancient Corduba-Malaca route.

Summary of sampled materials: The graves from this site are dated to the 4th century CE. They contain the remains of individuals of various ages and sexes. Burial 3 contained various grave goods, such as blue and black glass beads, bone pieces, a perforated shell, jet beads, and other jewelry-related items. the majority of the other graves contain no grave goods. There are also subadult graves, like Burial 94, containing the remains of a 4-6-year-old female with no grave goods, and Burial 168, with a 10-12-year-old female, also without grave goods. Anthropological studies determined specific conditions in certain graves(Diéguez-Ramírez, 2016; Diéguez-Ramírez et al., 2022). For example, Burial has osteomyelitis in the right tibia and osteophytes in the vertebrae (Ortega-Ruiz & Leggio, 2024)

Late-Imperial Iberia
G-M406>FGC5089>FGC5081>Y2724>L645*

Archeological ID: BLA-ME-1151
Sample ID:  I24953.AG
Location: Mérida, Badajoz, Spain
Address: Corralón de los Blanes Necropolis 38.919885, -6.345230
Time Period: Late Imperial Roman 
Age: Advanced Age (elderly)
Archeological Age: AD 400-500
YDNA: G-M406>FGC5089>FGC5081>Y2724>L645
MDTNA: G
Coverage: 0.677591129
Global25:

Archeological Information from Supplementary
Genetic Identifier: I24953. Grave Identifier: BLA-ME-1151; 8102.
Grave Type: Ossuary or secondary deposit in ceramic container. Skeletal information: Undetermined sex, adult, advanced age.
Grave goods: No grave goods.
Dating: Archeologically dated to 400-500 CE.
Ancestry summary: Iberia_IA__+__WestAnatolia_Roman_Byzantine__+__North_African_Punic.
Additional information: Secondary inhumation of which a ceramic vessel (amphora) is part, where the smaller bones are collected. There is wear in teeth and vertebrae and robust bones (advanced age?). The skull is not preserved; the hip is very fragmented and, due to its size, it is not included in the container. No trousseau or dress.

Published: Genetic Admixture and Language shift in the medieval Volga-Oka interfluve.

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Supplementary Information:

1.20 Mérida, Corralón de los Blanes Necropolis

Link to additional information.

Contact person(s): Macarena Bustamante Álvarez, Celia Chaves, Javier Heras Mora, Juan Manuel, Jiménez Arenas

Brief settlement history: The city of Mérida is built on the ruins of Augusta Emerita, which was the westernmost capital of the Roman Empire. Shortly after its founding, around 25 BCE, Augustus placed it at the head of the newly created Province of Ulterior Lusitania. The city flourished over the centuries, becoming an important political, economic, and administrative center. It had two large forums, temples, baths, monumental aqueducts, and impressive entertainment buildings, like the Roman Theater, Amphitheater, and Circus. The governor Otho once ruled here, and later became the emperor of Rome; the Flavian dynasty's beautification trends and the policies of the Hispanic emperors also favored Emerita. Its continued prosperity was not interrupted by the military or economic crises of the 3rd century. On the contrary, the city was promoted administratively by the reforms of Emperor Diocletian. The governor of the Diocese of Hispania, which covered the entire Iberian Peninsula and parts of North Africa, resided here. Its role in this new administration brought significant social, economic, cultural, and religious development, giving Augusta Emerita a cosmopolitan character until the fall of the Roman Empire. Even then, Mérida was sought after by barbarian tribes who wanted its wealth and power, seeking to dominate Hispania (Heras 2018). The city eventually became the seat or residence of the court or oligarchy around the king of the "Suevi," a Germanic group that was part of the "Great Migrations" of the 5th century, which led to the military crisis that ended the Roman Empire (Heras, 2018; Heras et al., 2017; Heras & Olmedo-Gragera, 2015).

Excavation History: In 2005, excavations began at the site known as "Corralón de los Blanes,"located at 41 Almendralejo Street in Mérida. This was a preventive excavation ahead of an urban development project that included building homes, commercial spaces, and underground parking on an area of half a hectare. The work stopped in 2007, with about 40% of the area still unexcavated. To this day, the project remains unfinished. Despite this, the findings are exceptional (Heras et al., 2017). So far, the excavation has reached over 12 meters in depth and spans 900 years of history, from the earliest levels near the turn of the era, shortly after the founding of Augusta Emerita, to the 9th century, when part of the area was used to dig storage silos during the Islamic Emirate period. During the Roman period, the first structures were monumental mausoleums, some preserved up to five meters in height. Successive archaeological phases also had a funerary nature, with cremations and inhumation burials continuing at least until the 3rd century. The use of the area as a necropolis likely ended in the 4th century, shifting to an extramural area that was eventually used as wasteland and dumps.

Each funerary or construction phase was preceded and followed by long periods when the land was used as a dump. Waste and soil acted as topographical agents, altering the original steep terrain, smoothing or reversing slopes over time. This dynamic was especially significant during the second half of the 4th century, when urban waste accumulations were leveled to build a complex of industrial buildings, storage facilities, and possibly 6 a "temple" for Eastern or mystery religions (Heras, 2011). This area was abandoned in the early 5th century and was violently and dramatically destroyed shortly after. People trapped in the rubble were never recovered for a proper burial. This event, dated through stratigraphy, material remains, and coins found on one of the bodies, is linked directly or indirectly to an assault on the city and the looting and destruction of areas outside the city walls.

On the ruins of these buildings and along the road leading from one of the city gates, new graves were dug for the most recent burials in this suburban area. Most of these were inhumation burials, similar in ritual and form to those of earlier centuries. However, some graves contained unique items like gold and silver jewelry or metal pieces that were likely part of the clothing worn by the deceased at their funeral. These bodies are of particular interest due to their origins, as they can be historically linked to the protagonists of the Great Migrations of the 5th century in Europe (Heras & Olmedo2548 Gragera, 2015).

Geographic Information: Mérida is currently the capital of Extremadura, the westernmost region of Spain. The region borders westernly with Portugal but the frontier is political as there is no geographical barriers. One of the main rivers on the Atlantic side of the Iberian Peninsula, the Guadiana River, flows through its urban core.

The Roman city was similar in size and covered a large area that spread across several promontories on the river's left bank. Beyond its walls, the city also stretched to the opposite river shore and into the surrounding plains. It reached the course of the Albarregas stream, a tributary that flows into the river at the city's base. The Roman-era burial grounds were located near the city walls, often close to the roads that led out of the city in all directions.