Roman citadel containing buried treasure and lost 2nd century fortress, first discovered in Scotland

The remains of a second-century Roman fort have been discovered in western Scotland, which was part of an unsuccessful attempt to expand the Roman Empire’s control throughout Britain.

The fort was one of up to 41 defensive structures built along the Antonine Wall, a fortification of mainly earthworks and wood that ran for about 40 miles (65 kilometers) across Scotland.

The Romans called the indigenous people “Caledonians” at that time, but later called them “Picts” due to their body paintings or tattoos. The fort’s buried stone foundations were detected using a non-invasive geophysical technique called gradiometry, which measures tiny variations in the Earth’s magnetic field.

The Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius ordered the wall to be built in AD 142, hoping to surpass his predecessor Hadrian, but his push was ultimately unsuccessful, in part because of the hostility of the indigenous people. Archaeologist John Reid explained that Roman emperors needed to claim a military victory, and so Antoninus Pius used his conquest of Scotland – while it lasted – to justify his rule.

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