Roman querns and millestones from the provinces on the territory of present-day Serbia.

Predmet proučavanja ove disertacije su arheološki aspekti mlevenja žitarica tokom antičkog i ranovizantijskog perioda u provincijama koje su se nalazile na tlu današnje Srbije. Analizirani su žrvnjevi i mlinovi sa preko dvadeset arheoloških lokaliteta i muzejskih depoa sa naše teritorije. Dobijeni rezultati poređeni su sa saznanjima o procesima mlevenja žitarica iz drugih delova Rimskog carstva. Cilj istraživanja bio je utvrđivanje vrsta alatki korišćenih za mlevenje žitarica, kako su one izgledale i kako su se menjale tokom vremena. Takođe, istraživanje je podrazumevalo i definisanje sirovina koje su korišćene za izradu alatki, njihovih izvora i proizvodnih centara, kao i kako su one transportovane do krajnjih korisnika. Rezultati istraživanja upućuju da su stanovnici rimskih provincija na našoj teritoriji koristili tri načina mlevenja. Najkorišćeniji način bilo je mlevenje žitarica ručnim rotacionim žrvnjevima. U prva četiri veka n.e. dominiraju cilindrični oblici žrvnjeva izraženo udubljene radne površine, dok primat od IV do VI veka imaju žrvnjevi ravnih i pločastih formi. Drugi način mlevenja odvijao se pomoću masivnih ,,suvih mlinova”, najverovatnije uz upotrebu životinjske snage. Ovi mlinovi korišćeni su na poljoprivrednim dobrima i u gradskim pekarama i njima se mogla proizvesti veća količina žitarica. Treći način mlevenja bila je upotreba vodenica, sofisticiranog mehanizma koji je nastao u II veku p.n.e., ali je punu primenu dobio tek u rimskom periodu. Za postojanje vodenica u provincijama na našem tlu dokazi su indirektni u vidu pronađenog vodeničnog kamenja. Prema pronađenom arheološkom materijalu, upotreba ovog mehanizma javlja se od IV veka n.e., i nastavlja da se praktikuje tokom narednih vekova. Arheometrijska analiza materijala od kojih su žrvnjevi i mlinovi pravljeni, pokazala su da su u upotrebi podjednako bile zastupljene magmatske i sedimentne stene. Tokom antičkog perioda, kao izvor magmatskih stena upotrebljivanih za izradu žrvnjeva na teritoriji Gornje Mezije, korišćena je planina Rudnik u severnom delu Šumadije. Izvorišta krečnjaka u okolini Singidunuma bila su vodeći izvor sedimentnih stena. U kasnoantičkom i ranovizantijskom periodu strategija je bila zasnovana na korišćenju lokalnih sirovina. Na Gamzigradu su korišćeni obližnji izvori, prvenstveno sedimentnih stena koje su imale prednost u izboru, najverovatnije zbog promene samog izgleda žrvnjeva.This thesis addresses archaeological aspects of crops milling during Antique and early Byzantine period in the provinces located on the territory of present-day Serbia. The analyses was conducted on querns and mills originated from more than twenty archaeological sites and museums from the territory of Serbia. The obtained results were compared with published data on the processes of crops milling in the other parts of Roman Empire. The aim of this thesis was a) to determine which tools were used for crops milling, how they looked like and changed over time, and b) to define which stone ressources were used to made tools, their sources and production centres, and how they were transported to the market. The results of this study showed that inhabitants of the roman provinces located on the territory of present-day Serbia used three ways of milling. The most used way of milling crops was done by rotary querns. During the first four centuries AD the most common are cylindrical type querns, with pronounced depression on work surface, while between 4th-6th centuries AD dominant type are flat disc querns. The second most common way of milling was done with the help of massive “dry mills”, possibly with the use of animal strength. These mills were used on the farms and in town bakeries and they could produce significant amount of crops. The third way of milling was done through watermills, the sophisticated mechanism developed in 2nd century BC, but it was fully utilized only in the Roman period. Although no direct evidences for watermills existence were found, several findings of watermill stones testified that watermills existed in the studied area. According to these findings, the use of watermills starts from 4th century AD, and continue to be used during the next few centuries. Provenancing of stones from which querns and millstones were made, showed that volcanic and sedimentary rocks were equally used. The mountain Rudnik, in northern part of Šumadija region, was the main source of volcanic rocks used for quern manufacturing during Antique period in the territory of Upper Moesia. Limestone deposits in the vicinity of Singidunum were the main source of sedimentary rocks. Later, during late Antique and early Byzantine period, the strategy was mostly based on the exploitation of locally available sources. At Gamzigrad only local sources were used, mostly sedimentary rocks, probably due to change in the appearance of querns