The Ancient Roman Empire’s Watchtowers

We are excited to welcome Mediterranean archeologist and UCO professor, Joey Williams, to HLOKC to share some of his field work findings. This is a study of the Roman Watchtowers.

When the Romans invaded the Iberian Peninsula, they faced a great deal of indigenous resistance. For two centuries, Lusitanian and Celtiberian leaders like Viriathus waged a guerilla war against the Roman conquerors. Finally, around the time Julius Caesar was governor of Hispania Ulterior, “Farther Spain,” the Romans instituted a new system to watch and control this far-flung territory. A system of watchtowers was built to provide surveillance over valuable resources and to claim territory for the Roman Empire.

This talk examines the excavation of one of these watchtowers, a place called Caladinho, and demonstrates how data from satellites can be used to reconstruct this ancient surveillance system.
Join us Monday, November 18 from 1:00pm-2:00pm. Seating is first come, first serve.