Short communication, Note
https://doi.org/10.33254/aia.21.1.14
A Prayer in Clay: a note on brickmaking in late 6th-century Sirmium
Mihajlo N. Džamtovski
orcid.org/0009-0002-1497-3156
; Department of Classical Archaeology, Faculty of Historical and Cultural Studies, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
Abstract
Ancient Sirmium (Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia) was an important Roman city, especially during Late Antiquity. During the Tetrarchic period and the first half of the fourth century, the city underwent enormous expansion, and economic activities – including brickmaking – reached their peak. However, following the Battle of Hadrianople (Edirne, Turkey) in 378, the central and eastern Danubian provinces suffered the disintegration of their socioeconomic systems and the ruralisation of urban culture. Consequently, the local brick industry declined and, following the Hunnic conquest in the 440s, ceased entirely. Inhabitants of this period relied on perishable materials and/or recycled bricks for construction. The Romans reconquered Sirmium in 567, reintroducing limited brick production. The city was assaulted by the Avars in 567 and eventually besieged in 579–582. A testimony to these events is a surviving brick inscribed with a prayer against the Avar peril. The manufacture of this brick during an assault or siege suggests that brickmaking – traditionally an extramural activity – may have been practised intra muros in during the late sixth century. Through an analysis of the socioeconomic and urban context of fifth- and sixth century Sirmium, and by comparing the location of contemporary kilns in the wider region, this paper explores the hypothesis that brickmaking shifted to an intramural activity in late sixth-century Sirmium.
Keywords
Avars; brickmaking; Early Byzantine Period; Late Antiquity; Pannonia; Sirmium; topography
Hrčak ID:
342678
URI
Publication date:
30.12.2025.
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