Reconstructing the Ancient Route Network in Pergamon’s Surroundings

• Main Author: Bernhard Ludwig
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-07-01
• Series: Land
• Subjects: ancient roads; ancient route network; Bakırçay Valley; GIS; itineraries; landscape archeology
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/9/8/241

The surrounding landscape of ancient Pergamon is characterized by several mountain ranges, the Bakırçay Valley and River and the Aegean coastline. The accessibility of this region was vital for the city since it provided food and resources as well as trade, communication and military movements, all facilitated by a well-developed route network. Despite the importance of roads for the development and prosperity of the city, the ancient route network is still widely unexplored and archeological evidence of roads is extremely rare. This study therefore aims to reconstruct the ancient route network in the surroundings of Pergamon by combining historical and archeological sources with modern computer-aided least-cost path analyses, while also considering changes in the landscape that have occurred since antiquity. Based on these detailed results, conclusions may be drawn about the characteristics and functional diversity of the routes. Although the investigation of the route network in the surroundings of Pergamon cannot be considered complete, the results of this study already offer a valuable basis for further research, analyses, modeling and field work.