Q&A: Ancient dromedary skull found in Tongeren
In 2014, a team of archaeologists found a skull of unknown origin in the ruins of a Roman settlement in Tongeren. It has taken them three years to determine what animal it belonged to
Long way from home
How did you find the skull?
We initially discovered the remains of two Roman residential blocks, known as insulae, that were separated by a road in what is now Tongeren. In the late Roman period, the locals built a new wall that crossed through the buildings. As a consequence, most of the eastern building ended up outside the wall and was abandoned. In the trench that intersected the wall, we came upon a lot of bone fragments. They included a relatively complete skull of a dromedary.
A dromedary? Here? Are you sure?
We have determined that these are the remains of a male adult – most likely a dromedary, but it could also be a camel, or a hybrid of both, as these were commonly used back then. The Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences have studied the bones, and scientists in Vienna are now carrying out a DNA analysis, so we should have a conclusive answer soon.
How common are findings like this?
It is only the second time remains of a dromedary from Roman times have been found in Belgium; the first was discovered in Arlon in Wallonia. In all of northwest Europe, there have only been about 20 other cases, and all of them were found along Roman roads.
How did this one get here?
For centuries, the Roman Empire used dromedaries as pack animals; the ones from Tongeren and Arlon come from the fourth century AD, or the late Roman period. Normally, the animals would perish by the side of the road and eventually decompose. We will never know how this one ended up in Tongeren. It could be that the skull came from somewhere else, because there is no trace of the rest of the skeleton.
Photo courtesy Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
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