Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.17234/RadoviZHP.57.03
Nehaj (Senj): New Insights into the Settlement and Connectivity of Late Iron Age Senia [sUMMARY]
Pio Domines Peter
; Institut za arheologiju
Marina Ugarković Džafić
; Institut za arheologiju
Abstract
Different interpretations regarding the function and character of the site on the hill of Nehaj – a prominent elevation located south of Senj – have been presented in earlier archaeological literature. As early as the 19th century, on the basis of numerous surface amphora fragments, it was proposed that the area represented a “necropolis in which cremated individuals were buried in large ceramic amphorae”. Later scholarship suggested that during the 2nd–1st centuries BCE the southwestern slopes of Nehaj may have hosted a small settlement or some form of economic facility, possibly a workshop area or a rural villa (villa rustica), with the spring located at the shoreline in the area of Crljenka, below the southwestern slopes, potentially playing a key functional role in this interpretation.
During works at Nehaj Park in 2012, a significant quantity of movable archaeological material was collected. In February 2019 a systematic field survey of Nehaj was conducted with the aim of assessing its archaeological potential. For this purpose, a grid composed of 20 × 20 m units was created in order to enable systematic surface inspection and recording of finds. The survey documented a broad distribution of numerous surface finds that clearly outlined the area and boundaries of the site. The finds are most numerous and densely concentrated on the northwestern and western slopes, with smaller concentrations on the eastern and southwestern slopes. Analysis of the Digital Terrain Model (DTM) of Nehaj, based on the latest LiDAR data, revealed traces of a rampart up to 5 m wide, extending approximately 120 m from the western slopes towards the summit plateau. The location, alignment, and monumental proportions of this structure, together with the local topography, reflect the defensive character of the site and an intentional restriction of access from the most accessible eastern side of the elevation. Further support for this interpretation derives from the relationship between architectural remains and the distribution of surface finds: the highest concentration and density of movable material were recorded within the perimeter of the rampart. The regularity of this pattern is also understandable in the context of the microclimatic characteristics of the terrain: the northwestern slopes of Nehaj provide the most favourable conditions for permanent human occupation – naturally protected by steep slopes on two sides, exposed to sunlight and sheltered from the bora wind, while at the same time situated very close to a sheltered coastal inlet only a few hundred metres away.
The assemblage examined in this study consists of 67 artefacts, the majority of which are ceramic (60); amphora sherds: 21, amphora stoppers: 28, fineware: 8, coarseware (3), accompanied by a small number of metal (3), glass (1), and ground-stone objects (3). Most of material was collected during works in park 2012, while the other was yielded in the systematic field survey carried out in 2019. A previously unpublished bronze coin from Nehaj, now kept in a private collection in Senj, has also been included.
Among the amphora rims recovered on Nehaj, earlier varieties of Greco–Italic amphorae (G–I) – those datable to the late 4th and early 3rd centuries BCE – are notably absent. Several fragments may be attributed to later varieties of G–I amphorae characterized by an almost completely horizontal triangular rim (T. 1; T. 2: 1), often with a groove directly beneath the rim (T. 1: 1–4; T. 2: 1). These forms correspond to type Will 1C of the late 3rd century BCE and continued into the 2nd century BCE. Morphologically, these fragments also show links with early Lamboglia 2 amphorae, which is unsurprising given the gradual development of the latter from G–I shapes. Different variants showing similar characteristics may therefore be interpreted as transitional forms. Some specimens lose the triangular rim profile entirely and adopt classical features characteristic of L2 amphorae (T. 2: 2–9). A potential transitional form between L2 and Dressel 6 amphorae – the production of which developed toward the end of the 1st century BCE – may, with caution, be recognized among the examples from Senj (e.g. T. 2: 8). The stamp NICO from Nehaj – already recorded in the 19th century– is attested in Pula, where the same inscription appears on L2, type C amphorae. It is presumed to represent the initial element of a Greek personal name, while the full name is documented on amphora specimens from Butrint and Este. Among the finds from Nehaj are ceramic amphora stoppers, including 11 wheel-made examples (T. 3) and 17 mold-made specimens (T. 4; T. 5: 1–5). Relief decoration appears on several stoppers, including geometric motifs and globules (T. 4: 5), arrow–shaped motifs (T. 4: 3, 4), and letter–like marks such as Z or N (T. 4: 12).
Only a small number of fragments of imported tableware corresponding to the (late) Hellenistic period were documented at Nehaj. Several body sherds, along with one rim and one base, may be attributed to black–gloss ware (T. 5: 6–8, 13). One rim fragment likely belongs to one of the most common Hellenistic bowl types – a simple bowl with an inward–curving rim (T. 5: 6), probably dating to the late 3rd or 2nd century BCE. Several fragments, mostly body sherds (T. 5: 9–11) and one base (T. 5: 12), belong to grey–slipped late Hellenistic tableware, representing standard products of the late 2nd and 1st centuries BCE and still in use in the early Imperial period. Comparable forms of black–gloss and related grey–slipped fine wares have been documented in numerous contexts throughout the Kvarner region. This suggests that the wider adoption of imported fine ware in the northern Adriatic, particularly the Kvarner Gulf, can be traced from the late 4th and especially the 3rd century BCE onward. In the earlier phases these imports originated primarily from workshops in southern and central Italy, and later increasingly from regional production centres.
Among the coarse pottery, three fragments were documented: one handle (T. 5: 14) and two base fragments (T. 5: 15–16). Their characteristics are not sufficiently diagnostic for precise dating, and they can be broadly classified as local coarse ware typical of prehistoric contexts in the region. Three small ground–stone artefacts may be identified as quernstones. Two specimens (T. 5: 17–18) are characterized by a porous and vesicular texture typical of volcanic stone. Similar quernstones made of volcanic material have been noted on other hillfort sites along the Velebit littoral (e.g., Senj–Kuk, Sveti Juraj–Gradina, Starigrad–Gradina), and although they have not yet been comprehensively studied, they align with other imported material that most likely reached the area via maritime routes.
The numismatic assemblage includes a bronze coin (AE, 26.4 mm, 11.51 g, 12 h) belonging to an emission of the Numidian Kingdom minted under Masinissa or his successors (208–148 BCE and later) (Fig. 3: 1). This previously unpublished example from Nehaj complements existing finds of Numidian coins in the wider Senj area. As some of the northernmost occurrences of such coins in the eastern Adriatic, the Senj examples further confirm their northward distribution and underline one of the possible corridors of their arrival into the trans–Velebit hinterland. Other metal finds include a small bronze tweezer (39 × 4 mm; Fig. 3: 2), a small bronze hook with a short neck and rounded section (Fig. 3: 3), and a blue cylindrical glass bead fragment, likely part of a larger piece of jewellery (Fig. 3: 4).
This assemblage convincingly confirms a chronological range between the (late?) 3rd and 1st centuries BCE as the period of activity on Nehaj. Moreover, the presence of late G–I amphorae, combined with fragments morphologically close to classical L2 examples, suggests – cautiously – that amphorae, as the most numerous material category, may more precisely define the peak of site activity in the 2nd and early 1st centuries BCE. Through its features – fortifications, movable finds, elevated position, and prominent role within its surrounding landscape – Nehaj conforms to the pattern of hillfort sites that – at least from the Late Bronze Age onward – shaped settlement systems on the slopes of Velebit. The documented finds clearly indicate settlement activities, and their composition corresponds to typical surface assemblages found at numerous hillforts along the Velebit coast that functioned as central settlements of local communities during the Late Iron Age.
The large number of amphora fragments in association with ceramic stoppers suggests the possibility of specific economic activities linked to the handling, storage, and redistribution of amphorae and their contents. Beyond Nehaj, G–I and L2 amphorae have been documented in Senj at the sites of Kuk and Štela and at several underwater locations in the vicinity, possibly anchorages or disturbed shipwrecks, all of which clearly indicate extensive maritime and commercial contacts with the wider Adriatic region. Recent research connects the abundance of amphorae in this area with new forms of intensified distribution and consumption of wine – conventionally associated with the primary function of these amphora types (vinaria). A similar situation is observable across the Kvarner region, where earlier amphora forms such as Corinthian B are notably scarce and early G–I types are comparatively infrequent, while L2 amphorae are widely distributed. This pattern may indicate a comparatively later adoption of widespread wine consumption – from the 3rd to 2nd centuries BCE – in contrast to the central and southern Adriatic, and potentially highlights the central role of Roman traders who were particularly active in expanding amphora–borne commerce. The quantity of amphora fragments already documented at sites in Senj suggests that the scale of trade exceeded the needs of the local market. This points to the existence of developed redistribution mechanisms in which Senia played an important mediating role. The intensive circulation of amphorae and their contents may therefore have been one of the key drivers of economic growth and the strengthening of Senia’s position within regional contact networks during the Late Iron Age and Republican period.
New insights from Nehaj allow a revised understanding of the topography and settlement patterns of prehistoric Senia. The concentration of Hellenistic and late Republican finds documented at three apparently distinct micro–locations – Kuk, Štela, and Nehaj – suggests that the settlement pattern in the narrower Senj area at the transition from protohistoric to historic periods was at minimum dispersed and potentially multi–centralised. Although the absence of systematic excavations and stratigraphic data limits the precise chronological relationships between these micro–locations, their spatial proximity suggests that they belonged to a single settlement and administrative unit that had taken shape no later than the Late Iron Age. Various imported objects – fragments of Hellenistic and Late Republican amphorae, stoppers, fineware, numismatic and other finds – stand out as strong indicators of economic, settlement, and commercial activity at Nehaj from the late 3rd to the 1st century BC. In this context, Nehaj emerges as one of the key points for understanding the complex spatial organization, economic processes, and social changes that shaped the final phase of Senia’s transformation from a local Iron Age community into a Roman urban center.
Keywords
Senia; Nehaj; protohistory; amphorae; amphora stoppers; hellenistic pottery; coinage
Hrčak ID:
352351
URI
Publication date:
21.12.2025.
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