Close-up: everybody digs Heerlen
Archaeologist Saskia Stevens teamed up with Heerlen residents to dig for remains from the Roman period. At 25 locations in the city, both in public areas and in residents’ backyards, they laid out ‘square-metre pits’. Under the guidance of archaeologists, residents conducted real archaeological research.
The project connected to Saskia’s research project, Constructing the Limes. This examines the function, influence and meaning of the Roman Empire’s border, not only in Roman times, but also the ongoing effects now. Borders are often seen as hard dividing lines. By looking at the archaeological material, researchers find out more about the impact of that border on the mobility of people and the distribution of goods. It could be that the border had a connecting rather than dividing function. They also look at how in the present day -for example, by politicians- the border is recalled. This research shows that the border is mainly seen as a dividing line between the Romans and barbarians, which is a simplified, one-sided and incorrect picture.
Text: Stephanie Helfferich
Thanks to the many participants, we were able to carry out a kind of ‘keyhole surgeries’ in many different places to see what traces this Roman influence left behind. Those finds and traces we have investigated and worked out, and will present to the participants in March 2024.
Finally feeling the practice, instead of behind glass in a museum.
I don’t do much with my garden, and this is a fantastic project. We live here in the middle of the old Roman part of Heerlen.
While gardening, I once found a Roman sherd. I took it to the museum; it turned out to be the bottom of a Roman jar. So who knows what else lies there.