Roman altar dedicated to Jupiter pulled from the Danube. They were searching for a medieval monastery, another stone may belong to the sun god

Archaeologists from the Intercisa Museum in the Hungarian town of Dunaújváros pulled a fragment of a Roman altar stone dedicated to Jupiter from the exposed Danube riverbed. A few days later, two fragments of a limestone slab with inscriptions were added, another altar fragment which according to preliminary reading could have belonged to the sun god, and a stone piece decorated with grape clusters and vine leaves. They were searching for a medieval monastery in the process.

Record-low water levels exposed sections of the riverbed that had been underwater for years. During the same survey, however, the museum also found an object it considers to be unexploded ammunition from World War II, and called in bomb disposal experts. Archaeology News Online Magazine ↗

Searching for a monastery, found Rome

Museum staff searched with archaeologist-diver Attila J. Tóth around Szalki Island and focused on a location where they suspected a vanished medieval Pentele monastery. Instead of medieval walls, a fragment of a Roman altar dedicated to Jupiter emerged from the riverbed, and a few days later two fragments of a limestone slab with inscriptions. Múlt-kor ↗

The series continued. Archaeologist-museologist Antal Tibor Szabó announced according to the city website another altar fragment which, according to preliminary reading, was dedicated to the sun god, in the Hungarian source designated as "Deus Sol," and finally a particularly decorated piece of stone with grape clusters, tendrils, and vine leaves. The latter was brought to the museum thanks to a report from three local residents. Dunaújváros Online ↗

How one recognizes which god an altar was dedicated to

The shape of the stone reveals only that it is an altar — a base, a body with an inscription field, and a capital with a shallow bowl for libations. Who it was dedicated to is told by the inscription, and Roman votive altars have very standardized formulations in this respect. Dedication to Jupiter almost always begins with the abbreviation I O M, meaning Iovi Optimo Maximo — "To Jupiter Best and Greatest." This is followed by the donor's name, his function or unit, and at the end there is usually the formula V S L M, votum solvit libens merito, meaning that the donor fulfilled his vow willingly and deservedly.

Precisely for this reason, even a fragment can be sufficient for identification. I O M is one of the most common abbreviations in all Roman epigraphy, so if this abbreviation is legible on the altar in the first line, it is very strong evidence of dedication to Jupiter. With the second find, caution is warranted — the museum states that the inscription is heavily worn and the stone will require further cleaning and study. Dedication to the sun god is so far a preliminary reading, not a final result. The museum has not yet published the complete text of the Jupiter altar inscription either. Dunaújváros Online ↗

A border garrison from Syria

Intercisa was not an insignificant border settlement, but a military camp with a civilian settlement directly on the Danube limes in the province of Pannonia, that is, on the frontier of the empire, and from the late 2nd century the cohors I milliaria Hemesenorum — a thousand-strong unit of archers recruited in Syrian Emesa, present-day Homs — was stationed in the camp. The soldiers brought their home cults with them, and according to local inscriptions, the sun god Elagabal and the goddess Diana Tifatina held a special place, to whom the unit built a temple in the year 202. Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites ↗

Available reports do not connect the new stone with this garrison and cannot yet connect it — the inscription is destroyed and sun deities were worshipped throughout the empire. But it shows why Hungarian archaeologists expect more from cleaning than just confirming the name of the god. Inscriptions on such altars and slabs often bear specific names, military units, and dates — precisely what can be pieced together about life on the frontier of the empire. Archaeology News Online Magazine ↗

The river gives and closes again in a few weeks

Hungary is not alone. In northern Bulgaria near the village of Gigen, the foundations of a bridge erected by Emperor Constantine I and completed in 328 emerged from the water. The more than two-kilometer-long structure connected Ulpia Oescus on the southern bank with Sucidava on the northern and was among the longest known ancient bridges. However, it served only for a few decades; by 367 it was probably no longer usable according to experts. The exact time and circumstances of its destruction remain unexplained to this day. Múlt-kor ↗

The team of the Regional Historical Museum in Pleven is therefore working with drones. Archaeologist Pavel Popov speaks of a rare opportunity to document and survey commonly submerged structural elements directly in the field while the rising water level again conceals them. Pravda ↗

Near the Serbian Novi Sad, remains of Szigetsánc appeared, in German Insel Schanz. This forward fortification with earthen ramparts, four bastions, a water-filled moat, and covered communication trenches was built in the mid-18th century as part of the external defense of Petrovaradin Fortress to prevent the enemy from crossing the Danube. The riverbed has since shifted, the river has washed away much of Varadin Island, and the main channel cut through, so the small fortress ended up underwater. It was last mentioned in 1999 when machinery hit its remains during the construction of an underwater gas pipeline. HVG ↗

It is not just about the Danube. Low water on the Vistula revealed an axe and a mattock made of deer antler in Warsaw territory, which experts preliminarily date to the Neolithic. They were found by the Million Explorers Team group, and according to its members, the objects likely came loose from a settlement further upstream and the water brought them to the city. STVR ↗

Stones belong to the state and munitions lie in the riverbed

The museum added a warning to reports of the finds. According to it, activity by treasure hunters has significantly increased along the Danube, while Roman and other archaeological stone fragments are, under Hungarian law, state property. Their appropriation is a criminal offense and the museum warns that it will report such cases to the police. At the same time, it points out that the river level is currently rising and the current is very strong, so entering the water can be life-threatening. Dunaújváros Online ↗

The exposed riverbed is revealing not only antiquity but also war — in Budapest a German motorcycle with human remains, near Kisoroszi a half-ton bomb, near Komárno a British anti-ship mine.

Read also: The Danube revealed a German motorcycle with a soldier's remains and a bomb. Drying rivers uncover war, mammoths and hungry stones

This window on such finds is closing unevenly. On the Hungarian section, the water level rose after the historical minimum and the Paks power plant began restoring capacity. Onet ↗

The situation is opposite on the lower reaches. Romania shut down the second reactor of the Cernavodă nuclear power plant on August 13, having already turned off the first at the end of July, so the power plant is completely offline. HN ↗

What hotinfo is monitoring