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Archaeological excavations conducted within the Mediterranean region have demonstrated the systematic use in antiquity of ships or parts of ships as building material. In Dalmatia, this practice has been noted in the Bay of Caska on Pag Island, north of Zadar, and in the Bay of Kaštela between Split and Trogir. Since 2009 excavations by a Franco-Croatian team at Caska have led to the study of the remains of four vessels that were deliberately sunk and filled with stones in order to be used as foundations for harbour jetties. This site has also revealed a coffered structure that was well adapted to the tidal and submerged zone, along with the application of simple and efficient systems for the consolidation and stabilisation of the coastal fringe. All of the building techniques attested in the bays of Caska and Kaštela make use of recycling in line with a practice that is well established in the Roman world. They also take full advantage of the local availability of timber and stone., Les fouilles archéologiques entreprises dans la région méditerranéenne attestent, pour l’Antiquité, l’utilisation systématique de navires ou de parties de navires comme matériaux de construction. En Dalmatie cette pratique est avérée dans la baie de Caska sur l’île de Pag au nord de Zadar et dans la baie de Kaštela entre Split et Trogir. À Caska, les fouilles menées depuis 2009 par une équipe franco-croate ont permis d’étudier les vestiges de quatre embarcations qui ont été volontairement coulées et remplies de pierres pour être ensuite réutilisées comme fondations de jetées portuaires. Ce site a aussi restitué une structure à caissons bien adaptée à la zone tidale et immergée à côté de la mise en oeuvre de systèmes simples et efficaces pour l’assainissement et la stabilisation de la frange littorale. Toutes les techniques de construction attestées dans les baies de Caska et de Kaštela font appel au recyclage selon une pratique bien ancrée dans le monde romain. Elles tirent aussi le meilleur parti de la disponibilité locale en bois d’oeuvre et en pierres.

International audience; The dendrological and dendrochronological study of the wooden structures excavated in the Bay of Caska island of Pag (Croatia) started in 2009 after the unearthing of the remains of a first vessel assembled with the old Liburnian sewing technique (Caska 1). From this date, the discovery of the remains of three others shipwrecks, two sewn boats (Caska 3 and 4) and one vessel assembled by “mortise-and-tenon” joints (Caska 2), offered the unique circumstance to study a rich assemblage of contemporaneous wooden ship elements. Other important data obtained from the analysis of the wooden harbour structures of the Bay of Caska further enriched the assemblage. The systematic identification of the wooden species utilised in all the preserved ship’s remains, the analysis of the morphological characteristics of a large number of ship’s components, and the dendrochnological analyses crossed with AMS radiocarbon dating calibrated by wiggle matching provide a unique perspective on the use of the wood as shipbuilding material in a specific geographical transport zone of the Eastern Adriatic. This research project is one of the results of the international interdisciplinary research project Cissa Antiqua, promoted since 2009 by the University of Zadar and Centre Camille Jullian (Aix-Marseille University – CNRS), in collaboration with the Municipality of Novalja.The presentation provides an overview of the more significant results gathered from the dendrological and dendrochronological study. Some important questions such as the date, the local construction and the origin of the four vessels will be developed in relation to the architectural analysis and interpretation of the ship finds.

International audience; The article provides an overview of the results of the international interdisciplinary research project Cissa Antiqua, promoted since 2009 by the University of Zadar and Centre Camille Jullian (Aix-Marseille University – CNRS), in collaboration with the Municipality of Novalja. The island of Pag belongs to the geographical region of Northern Dalmatia, and is the fourth biggest island of Croatia. A Liburnian population inhabited it during the time of the Roman conquest, and Pliny the Elder mentioned it under the name of Cissa (Hist. Nat., 3, 140). Although the position of the main Liburnian settlement has not been confirmed, it has been suggested that it was situated on the hill of Košljun in the near vicinity of the bay of Caska, at the north-western edge of the gulf of Pag. The bay of Caska preserved the notable remains of a multi-stratified settlement, whose important phase seems to be identifiable with a big and well-organized maritime villa property of the senatorial family Calpurnii Pisones. The systematic documentation and study of the structures on land and underwater started just recently, revealing some interesting archaeological features. The muddy bottom of the bay preserved a wooden anchor and the remains of two seagoing vessels from the Early Roman Imperial Period. The ship Caska 1, about 9 m long, was assembled with the old Liburnian lacing technique that survived in Roman times. It was probably sunk on purpose, and reused to reinforce some pier-like wooden coastal structure. The ship Caska 2 is more than 15 m long, and was assembled by the standard Roman mortise-and-tenon shipbuilding technique. This ship was also sunk on purpose, and reused in a pier structure. Other significant underwater finds include rectangulaire caissons composed of logs and filled with stones, which probably served as the basis of a pier or a breakwater.The article focuses on the detailed description of the preserved ships’ remains, in their cultural and historical context.

The communication presents the harbor structures dated to the Roman time found in the bay of Caska, island of Pag (Croatia), La communication présente les structures portuaires d'époque romaine découvertes dans la baie de Caska, île de Pag (Croatie)

International audience; The island of Pag belongs to the geographical region of Northern Dalmatia, and is one of the five biggest islands of Croatia. A Liburnian population inhabited it during the time of the Roman conquest, and Pliny the Elder mentioned it under the name of Cissa (Hist. Nat., 3, 140). Although the position of the main Liburnian settlement has not been confirmed, it has been suggested that it was situated on the hill of Košljun in the near vicinity of the bay of Caska, at the north-western edge of the gulf of Pag. The bay of Caska preserved the notable remains of a multi-stratified settlement, whose important phase seems to be identifiable with a big and well-organized maritime villa property of the senatorial family Calpurnii Pisones. The systematic documentation and study of the structures on land and underwater started just recently, revealing some interesting archaeological features.The muddy bottom of the bay preserved a wooden anchor, an interesting structure made of rectangular caissons composed of logs and filled with stones, which probably served as the basis of a pier or a breakwater, and the remains of three seagoing vessels from the Early Roman Imperial Period, uncovered until 2015. The boat Caska 1, about 9 m long, was assembled with the old local sewing technique that survived into Roman times. It was probably scuttled and reused to reinforce some pier-like wooden coastal structure. On the other hand, Caska 2 is more than 15 m long, and was assembled by the standard Roman mortise-and-tenon shipbuilding technique. This ship was also scuttled and reused in a pier-like structure. Finally, a fragment of planking of a sewn boat similar to Caska 1, named Caska 3, was found inside the ship Caska 2. The poster aims at presenting the remains of the three ships, without entering into details on their secondary infrastructural function, and the adjacent harbour structures.

The communication presents the results of the international and interdisciplinary project CissAntiqua in the bay of Caska, island of Pag (Croatia)., La communication présente les résultats du programme international et interdisciplinaire CissAntiqua dans la baie de Caska, île de Pag (Croatie)