Winsum-Bruggeburen, Third Report on the Excavation Bronze and Other Roman Finds

The Roman finds other than coins and pottery, from the 1997 excavation at Winsum, are presented here. The majority of the finds date to the Augustan/Tiberian period, while a small number of objects date to the second and third centuries AD. The objects include metal items such as brooches, but also glass and other precious finds. The assemblage seems to point to the presence of the Roman army in the early first century AD while the later finds appear to indicate different contacts with the Romans. Winsum was situated in a densely populated area which was studded with large numbers of small terpen , dwelling mounds which accommodated one or two farmhouses. The clay district of Friesland was surrounded by peat and water, it was only accessible via higher grounds along the coast or by ship. Winsum was situated near the river Boome which had an outlet in the Wadden Sea, from where the Ijsselmeer (then Lake Flevo, former Zuiderzee) could be reached. Branches of the Rhine discharged into the Ijsselmeer and the connection with the Rhine was facilitated by the Fossa Drusiana .