Comparative Study of Roman Iron Slags Discovered in the Roman Auxiliary Fort and Settlement of Călugăreni

Abstract

Abstract Iron slag samples unearthed at the eastern border of Roman Dacia, in the auxiliary fort and the military settlement of Călugăreni (Mikháza) are investigated by macroscopic inspection, optical microscopy (OM) and FTIR spectroscopy in order to comparatively characterize their macro- and microstructure as well as their mineralogical composition. During the recent archaeological excavations, a large number of iron artefacts were discovered together with a great quantity of iron slag fragments. The present paper focuses on the data obtained from 17 slag samples.