Page 121 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol 13(2) (2025)

The Roman Urbanisation of the Northern Adriatic Island of Cres: Re-Evaluation
of Archaeological Sources from Osor, Cres and Beli
Rimska urbanizacija severnojadranskega otoka Cresa: ponovna ocena arheoloških virov
iz Osorja, s Cresa in iz Belega

Nives Doneus
Vienna Institute for Archaeological Science (VIAS), University of Vienna
Human Evolution & Archaeological Sciences (HEAS), University of Vienna
nives.doneus@univie.ac.at
Andreja Sironić
Laboratory for Measurements of Low-level Radioactivity, Ruđer Bošković Institute
andreja.sironic@irb.hr
121

Abstract
The article examines the question of Roman urbanisation on the island of Cres during the early imperi-
al period. It seeks to balance the markedly different levels of research conducted at Osor, Cres, and Beli,
evaluating them impartially. This re-evaluation is based on the principle that considering inscriptions,
architecture, and landscape context together provides a more comprehensive understanding of Roman
urban development than treating these categories separately. Adopting this approach has improved un-
derstanding of the available archaeological evidence. At the same time, it has revealed that perceptions
of the Roman towns on Cres are influenced more by the state of research than most scholars would ad-
mit. The contribution of archaeological prospection methods and the dating of historical mortar are
also discussed. Due to the very different post-Roman historical trajectories and natural conditions at
each site, a wide range of results has been observed.
The findings confirm that Osor was the Roman centre of Cres and that the inscription CIL III 3148
(10131) most likely originates from there. The location of the potential Roman settlement of Crexi re-
mains unknown. No evidence was found to support the existence of an early imperial town at Beli. In-
stead, the dating of the city wall mortar indicates a settlement phase in late Antiquity.
Keywords: Kvarner Islands, Osor, Cres, Beli, Roman municipium, Mortar analysis

Izvleček
Članek obravnava rimsko urbanizacijo otoka Cres v zgodnjem cesarskem obdobju. Poskuša uravno-
težiti zelo različno raziskanost Osorja, Cresa in Belega ter jih nepristransko ovrednotiti. To ponovno
vrednotenje temelji na načelu, da celovito razumevanje rimske urbanizacije omogoča sočasno upošte-
vanje napisov, arhitekture in krajinskega konteksta, saj posamezne kategorije same ne dajejo popolne
slike. Takšen pristop je izboljšal razumevanje razpoložljivih arheoloških virov. Hkrati je pokazal, da je
naše dojemanje rimskih mest na Cresu odvisnejše od stanja raziskav, kot bi si marsikateri raziskovalec
želel priznati. Obravnavana sta tudi vloga arheoloških prospekcijskih metod in datiranje zgodovinske
malte. Zaradi povsem različnih zgodovinskih procesov po rimskem obdobju in naravnih pogojev na
posameznih lokacijah so rezultati zelo različni.
Rezultati potrjujejo, da je bil Osor rimsko središče otoka Cresa in da napis CIL III 3148 (10131) verjetno
izvira od tam. Lokacija morebitnega rimskega naselja Crexi ostaja neznana. Ni dokazov, ki bi potrjeva-
li obstoj zgodnjecesarskega mesta Beli. Datiranje malte mestnega obzidja kaže na fazo naselitve v po-
zni antiki.
Ključne besede: kvarnerski otoki, Osor, Cres, Beli, rimski municipij, analiza malte
https://doi.org/10.26493/2350-5443.13(2)121-138 © author/authors