Using ground-penetrating radar to search for a small temple believed to be hidden beneath an ancient church in Croatia, scientists have discovered an entire ancient structure that is far grander and dates back to the Roman era.
According to Heritage Daily, the unexpected survey took place at an 18th-century church in the village of Danilo, located in the Dalmatia region of Croatia.
Researchers employed ground-penetrating radar (GPR), a geophysical method that uses radar pulses to look into objects hidden deep underground without disturbing the structures above.
Close-up of the ancient church and some structures excavated around it, revealed through the mysterious “ghost” shown in the ground-penetrating radar data – (Photo: HERITAGE DAILY)
Ground-penetrating radar is commonly used to map ancient sites, explore ruins trapped beneath other structures, and accurately locate excavation sites for potentially diggable remains.
The ancient church, which still stands prominently on the site, is believed to have been built on the ruins of a small Romanesque Christian structure. The initial purpose of the survey was to locate that site; however, the ground-penetrating radar revealed the “ghost” of a more mysterious, ancient, and grander structure.
This structure is a large rectangular building, with clear signs of columns and an entrance visible. The area has been surveyed over the following years, revealing a series of structures and intricately decorated building blocks. The main building measures approximately 20×10 meters.
This site is a major center of the ancient city, where important public activities took place, with inscriptions referring to Municipium Riditarum, a settlement of the Romanized Ridite tribe.
Professor Fabian Welc from the Archaeological Institute of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw, Poland, stated: “The data we have collected shows that beneath the church and the nearby cemetery lies the most significant part of any Roman city.”
A joint Polish-Croatian project has been underway in Danilo since 2019 and is still ongoing. The dating of the structure and its overall scale remain unclear, but the period of Roman Empire dominance in Europe spans several decades before Christ to the 3rd century AD, suggesting that this ancient “ghost” could be up to 2,000 years old.
