(FreePressBeacon.com) – In a bombshell find, archaeologists recently unveiled the discovery of an ancient stone wall and accompanying earthworks in Calabria, Italy.
The wall is believed to have been constructed by Romans to trap the notorious gladiator and rebel leader Spartacus and his followers.
Hidden under a blanket of leaves and a thick layer of moss within the Dossone della Melia forest, the wall spans 1.6 miles.
As detailed in a press release from the Archaeological Institute of America, it features a ditch characteristic of the Roman defensive techniques known as fossa and agger.
Archaeologists speculate that the structure was built by the Roman general Marcus Licinius Crassus as a strategic move to encircle and confine Spartacus.
The site is littered with fragments of iron weaponry, including sword handles, curved blades and javelin points, which suggest that Spartacus and his men once fiercely attacked this barricade in a bid for freedom.
“We started studying weapons recovered along the wall, and the closest comparisons are with weapons from the late Republican period,” said Andrea Maria Gennaro of Italy’s Ministry of Culture. “We believe we have identified the site of the clash.”
Spartacus is renowned for escaping Capua with about 70 other enslaved gladiators, starting the Gladiator War (73 to 71 B.C.), during which they repeatedly bested Roman forces until Spartacus’s death at the Battle of Cantenna.
“This barrier can be identified as the enclosure/fortification wall erected by [Roman general] Marcus Crassus in 71 B.C. to contain and trap Spartacus and his forces,” Gennaro explained.
According to him, after a failed attempt to reach Sicily, Spartacus found coastal roads blocked by Roman forces, leaving crossing the Aspromonte mountain as his only escape route.
The site was brought to attention by a local group of environmentalists who informed Dr. Paolo Visona of the University of Kentucky.
This discovery highlights the potential for hidden historical treasures lying undiscovered beneath our feet, waiting to unveil more about our collective past.
Archaeologists identified a stone wall & earthwork extending over 2.7 km in the Dossone della Melia forest, Calabria, Italy. The wall,accompanied by a deep ditch, has been identified as part of structures built by the Roman general Marcus Licinius Crassus https://t.co/2xDVFKhDz2 pic.twitter.com/ghFPwzVgg5
— Ticia Verveer (@ticiaverveer) July 2, 2024
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