Zeugma

Zeugma on the Euphrates was an important city and frontier node between the Roman and eastern worlds. Archaeologically it is known above all for mosaics, houses, sealings, coins, military context and material connected with the Euphrates crossing.

Archaeological complex

The city grew at a strategic crossing and in Roman times was tied to the Syrian frontier. Excavated mosaic houses and finds from administrative contexts show Zeugma as a city of connection: road, river, trade, army and local elite met here.

Zeugma is important as an Euphrates city where excavations and rescue work before flooding revealed houses with mosaics, sealings and archival traces. Visual material shows the urban setting, luxurious interiors and the difficulty of preserving the site.

Zeugma is important as an Euphrates city where excavations and rescue work before flooding revealed houses with mosaics, sealings and archival traces. Visual material shows the urban setting, luxurious interiors and the difficulty of preserving the site.

Zeugma is important as an Euphrates city where excavations and rescue work before flooding revealed houses with mosaics, sealings and archival traces. Visual material shows the urban setting, luxurious interiors and the difficulty of preserving the site.

Finds and material setting

The evidence includes mosaic floors, frescoes, sculpture, sealings, coins, pottery, architectural fittings and traces of destruction and rescue excavation. For reconstructing eastern provincial settings, the houses are especially important: they show elite taste, mythological imagery and contacts across the Euphrates.

Visual and archaeological evidence is useful here as a check on the prose: it connects visible walls, layout, finds and museum objects with the historical setting. Main evidence groups:

• houses with mosaics, frescoes and sealings;
• rescue excavations connected with the Birecik reservoir;
• finds showing commercial and administrative links along the Euphrates;
• museum mosaic groups and their extraction context.

Visual and archaeological evidence is useful here as a check on the prose: it connects visible walls, layout, finds and museum objects with the historical setting. Main evidence groups:

• houses with mosaics, frescoes and sealings;
• rescue excavations connected with the Birecik reservoir;
• finds showing commercial and administrative links along the Euphrates;
• museum mosaic groups and their extraction context.

Visual and archaeological evidence is useful here as a check on the prose: it connects visible walls, layout, finds and museum objects with the historical setting. Main evidence groups:

• houses with mosaics, frescoes and sealings;
• rescue excavations connected with the Birecik reservoir;
• finds showing commercial and administrative links along the Euphrates;
• museum mosaic groups and their extraction context.

Interpretation and limits

The modern state of the evidence is tied to rescue work before part of the area was flooded. Excavated context, museum display and the lost or inaccessible part of the landscape therefore need to be distinguished clearly.

Related topics

• Roman Archaeological Sources
• Roman Empire
• Roman Army
• Amphorae
• Roman temples

Literature

• William Aylward (ed.). Rescue Archaeology at Zeugma. Los Altos, 2013.
• Kutalmis Gorkay. Zeugma excavation publications.
• Gaziantep Zeugma Mosaic Museum catalogues.