ROSIA MONTANA
Mining Romania'a past

by Tim Judy
December 2004

The international outcry from historians, archaeologists, university professors and academics over plans to let a Canadian mining company destroy a unique archaeological site has gone unnoticed at the Ministry of Culture, say opponents of the project. The Ministry, some local archaeologists claim, is all too eager to clear the path for Gabriel Resources to set up an open-cast gold mine in Alburnus Maior (Rosia Montana) while vast areas remain unexcavated.

In the eye of the debate is Carnic mountain in Rosia which is now the object of a court battle in Alba Iulia . The ministry has signed off on the discharge papers, meaning that the mountain has been thoroughly researched and can now be used for commercial purposes ñ or to put it more bluntly, Gabriel Resources can destroy it to start open-pit mining. Opponents, including the NGO Alburnus Maior, are legally contesting the discharge certificate. The Carnic case underscores two streams of

thought that sharply diverge on the issue of industry versus archaeology. ''Preventative archaeology is about compromise when it comes to major investment projects,'' says Dr Mircea Angelescu, director of historical monuments and museums at the Ministry of Culture, and who signed the discharge papers.

''There must be no compromise. If we don't defend our interests, no else one will. Those whose task it was to defend the monuments have sold them,'' counters Ioan Piso, director general at the Transylvania Museum of National History in Cluj and professor of Roman History at Cluj University .

Your correspondent was lucky enough to find a guide into the Carnic mines, and the Roman galleries are impressive indeed. We crawled and stooped through the ancient tunnels that wove through the guts of the mountain and which occasionally opened up onto massive galleries adorned with splendid stalactites. But always the tunnels dovetailed with the rich veins of gold and silver. Small niches were carved into the rough-hewn walls that once held the wicked oil lamps and which also measured the periods of work. Slipping through the mud-caked passageways and navigating descents that fell into a yawning blackness, we came across ancient stone steps carved in the rock that led deeper and deeper into Carnic's interior until pools of water stopped any forward progress.

Diodorus of Sicily, a contemporary of Julius Caesar and Augustus, describes Roman miners delving down into great depths ''extending their diggings for many stages and driving on galleries branching and bending in various directions, bringing up from the depths the ore which provides them with gain.'' Much of the gain from the Dacian mines was eventually shipped to Rome . The ore was carted down the mountain to the centre of the gold administration in modern day Zlatna, now a run-down mining town. The ore was then brought to the Danube or Sava rivers to be loaded on barges bound towards the capital of that great monarchy. And it's here in second century Rome where we should start the story.

The people of Rome had not witnessed such a savage display of imperial splendour in recent memory. The year was 106 AD and the Emperor Trajan was fresh from his campaign against the Dacians, finally eliminating the threat from, in Edward Gibbon's words, ''those most warlike of men who dwelt beyond the Danube.'' In celebration hundreds of thousands of spectators crammed into the newly refurbished Circus Maximus where the emperor staged gladiatorial games for 123 consecutive days. Following the reconstruction three years earlier the available seats expanded to 350,000 and the areas behind the senators and ambassadors of various kings were desegregated, allowing men and women to sit together to watch some 10,000 combatants and 11,000 animals spill their blood onto the circus sands. The extravagant games, coupled with the erection of a host of public works, spawned rumours that the state's coffers were bulging with captured booty.

Ancient writers accentuated on this, noting that the victorious legionnaires carted back some five million pounds of gold and double that amount in silver ñ the hoard of the deceased Dacian King Decebalus, who chose to commit suicide in the dense forests of the Carpathians over being hauled back to Rome in chains.

	But modern historians have disputed the amount of gold and silver cited in early writings. A French historian wrote that the amount was most likely ten times less than what was included in ancient sources. ''The large amount initially stated may have been simply propaganda,''says Mircea Babes, a member of the National Commission of Archaeology and Director of the
Excavation: archaeologists in a circular mausoleum dated 2nd-3rd century.	School of Archaeology at the University of Bucharest.

''The wars were hard fought and many Roman soldiers lost their lives. Trajan had to show the public that it was all worthwhile, and he spent lavish amounts on the people, games and public works. But large hordes of gold were unlikely as all the gold was under the mountains.'' He points out that there is no evidence that the Dacians had conducted large scale mining in the area prior to the Roman conquest, as much of the gold discovered had been imported, or found in river deposits.

But Beatrice Cauuet, a scholar from Le Mirail University in Toulouse who led a team of ten French archaeologists to Romania in 2000, discovered a pre-Roman wooden prop from the first century which, she said, ''proves for the first time that Dacian mining activity existed on the site.'' But archaeologists remain sceptical owing to the margin for error in the dating system used. Plus there has been no Dacian pottery found in the area.

One has to remember that from the time of Augustus in the beginning of the first century AD, the empire had strictly set boundaries, which, with the exception of the conquest of England , had stayed in place until Trajan crossed the Danube into Dacia . To again quote Edward Gibbon, ''On the death of that emperor (Augustus) his testament was publicly read in the Senate. He bequeathed, as a valuable legacy to his successors, the advice of confining the empire within those limits which Nature seemed to have placed as its permanent bulwarks and boundaries; on the west the Atlantic ocean ; the Rhine and Danube on the north; the Euphrates on the east; and towards the south, the sandy deserts of Arabia and Africa.''

Hence, as Babes puts it, ''It is naïve to think that Trajan would risk the lives of his troops and extend the frontier by 500-600 kilometres only for the gold. The expansion was mainly strategic because at the time of Domitian, Nerva and Trajan the Dacian kingdom became too strong and too aggressive. They posed the danger of unifying the entire barbarian people - the Germanic people in the middle Danube , today's Slovakia , and the Eastern Parthians.''

Dr Piso also supports the idea that Trajan's motivations were based solely on military strategy. The first war ended in 102 after an agreement was struck under which Decebalus would cool his ambitions and adopt a peaceful attitude towards Rome. But after the king again insulted the impunity of Rome Trajan finally decided to crush the Dacians and annexed the province in 106.

After the native population was driven out from the best part of the land, Dalmatians from central Illyricum were brought in to run the mining operations. Dr Piso notes that ''whole populations were brought in and each community had its own gallery. Rosia Montana consists of many settlements and each settlement consists of dwellings, temples, cemeteries and of course galleries. There are many Illyrian inscriptions found in Rosia Montana as well as names of unknown deities. The most well known find was wax tablets, which were contacts between the mines' operators and the Roman state, and are some of the best examples of Roman law. The Romans had rented the mines to investors and the investors did the same at a lower scale, hiring workers to mine the ore.''

	The Romans employed three types of mining techniques: the first and least difficult was surface mining, where the ore was in streambeds or exposed on the ground. When the ores were found on the surface the miners could track the metals into the ground by strip-mining the surface. This method is called open-cast. The third technique, which was used in the
Orlia museum and entrance to Roman mine gallery.	mountains of Rosia Montana, was deep-vein mining.

Only gold and silver were valuable enough to merit digging underground. Dangers posed to the miners working underground included lighting, poor ventilation and water flooding the tunnels. However, the thick veins of precious ore that criss-crossed the mountains of Alburnus Maior far outweighed the risks. Dr Piso explains: ''The amount of gold there was immense. For example, in the ancient mines of Spain there was on average one gram per ton. In Rosia Montana it could reach 7-10 grams per ton.'' It was said that there was enough gold to pave a road all the way to Rome.

Today, the four mountains that had once helped Rome finance so many luxurious endeavours would have to be destroyed if Gabriel Resources gets the go-ahead to start mining. (The fourth mountain Cetate is already being mined). Plans for the 13 million ton a year mine call for the valley of Rosia Montana to be turned into four open pit mines. (The company is still waiting for the government to grant the environmental license before it can officially start). But under these mountains are precious antiquities of mining techniques that date from not only the Roman times, but also the Medieval and Austro-Hungarian periods, Dr Babes from Bucharest University says.

''The point is this issue is not about individual finds. The whole landscape, which spreads over about a four-kilometre by four-kilometre radius, needs to be preserved, as it contains not only mines, but settlements, cemeteries and sanctuaries. It's not okay to simply put things in a museum, as one has to look at the landscape that has been modified by man as a whole.''

Gabriel Resources has set aside $6 million for archaeological research in the area, yet this is not a ''present,'' Babes notes, but a legal obligation. Under Romanian law, if a company wants to build, mine, or conduct earth-moving operations that could potentially destroy archaeological sites, the company has to pay for the research.

''It is alleged that somebody in a high position said 'If you pay that we will convince people to give the approval to discharge areas,'''Babes contends. ''The Ministry of Culture seems to be pressuring the archaeologists to give the go-ahead - directly or indirectly. The Ministry of Culture or regional authorities organised the research and now every year the National Commission of Archaeology, which advises the ministry, says nothing of importance was found that would merit the need to change the project. After removing the archaeological remains

the area would be free and the company could do what it wants.''Dr Babes was the only member of the

Ancient steps cut in stone leading into Carnic.

Commission to oppose the discharge of Carnic during a meeting in December 2003. He says that Gabriel Resources is pushing for 2005 to be the last year for research, yet, he says, an operation of this type and complexity would require a research period of at least 20 years, and at least $10 million funding for that research. ''One has to proceed slowly, unearthing every corner. We need time and money to excavate the whole area. It is a unique place in Europe where you can find settlement, religion and mining.''

But with investors chomping at the bit to get business started, is this view realistic? Mircea Angelescu from the Ministry of Culture says no. He admits that the entire area is filled with galleries, but he says the problem is the Roman galleries were followed by Medieval and Hapsburg mining operations so many of the ancient galleries were destroyed or are only a partial representation of their original state.

The second problem he says is that it would never be possible to make the area accessible to the public owing to high costs and security. ''There has never been an official feasibility study but it is estimated that it would cost $10-20 million for this. So who are we preserving them for if nobody could visit them,'' he says. ''Preventative archaeology is about compromise when it comes to major investment projects. So, you have an investor and he wants to make something, but this may impact the archaeology. This leads to two choices: the first is to let the investor do what he wants, and the second is to seek a compromise with the investor. Let him do the investment under some conditions and have him pay for what needs to be done and to save as much as possible before destruction. For example: a grave is discovered. The archaeologists make all the photos and proper studies. Then they take the bones out as well as the ornaments around the body. Now we have a hole in the ground ñ should that be preserved? Ninety nine per cent would say no, as all of the data have been saved. This small example is true for everything. Take the motorway being built by Bechtel ñ if we would excavate everything we would have a long hole, like an empty channel. So archaeologists make surveys and decide what needs to be saved.''

Angelescu also points out that opponents of the project say the area must be preserved to make a big archaeological park, but never say where the money would come from. ''If the NGOs offered an alternative plan for that area then it would be okay. In the past five years we have received $6 million from Gabriel Resources for research and we know 200 times more than we did before. It has given young archaeologists the chance to work to EU standards and we have had money for laptops, digital cameras, and other technical equipment.''

He also categorically denied that archaeologists are being bribed to downplay any findings that might delay the company from starting operations. ''In Romania there are 500 archaeologists that are registered. Of this number 250 are still working, while the rest are too young or too old. From this 250 there are 100 that have been working for the past five years at Rosia Montana. You cannot bribe 100 archaeologists at the same time.''

Leaving behind the new, modern offices of the Ministry of Culture, I travelled to Alba Iulia to speak with the director of the History Museum there, Horia Cigudeanu, who has slammed the practice of allowing business interests to trump the country's archaeological heritage. He also says he was forced off the National Commission for Archaeology in an attempt by the ministry to choke off any dissent.

''Two purges within the commission have taken place where people opposed to the project were kicked out. The first was in 2001, when I was ejected, and the second in 2003 when Dr Piso and others were removed,'' he says. ''What is very serious is that this commission has produced a system that completely controls research and excavation in Romania. One cannot practice independent research here, as this commission, together with the ministry, is responsible for granting licences for research. Until two months ago, this was only the case for excavations. The main reason for this is to allow big contracts, like the ones for Bechtel and Rosia, to go forward without any problems.'' (Dr Angelescu refutes this, saying that the ministry is simply aligning its practices with EU regulations under the La Valetta convention which, he says, states that there must be a sole authority that issues licences.)

Continuing, Cigudeanu says, ''In 2000 after the Rosia Montana mining project started I asked the Ministry of Culture to control and protect the site, as the company did not contact us. It was the duty of the museum, as the area was under its jurisdiction, as well as my responsibility to protect the site.''

''I did not want the area to follow the fate of Cetate, a mountain that was penetrated by hundreds of Roman mines, so spectacular that in the 18th and 19th centuries German artists make sketches of the place. But in 1972, after a political decision, the mountain was destroyed to start an open-cast pit mine. This was the first blow against Romania 's heritage.'' After Carnic, the next targets would be Jig mountain then Orla, the current site of the mining museum.

Cigudeanu says the French team led by Beatrice Cauuet in 2000 was invited by his museum to locate the most important archaeological sites in the area. But the following year, when a new minister of culture appeared, the Alba Iulia museum lost its power and leverage and the National Museum of Bucharest was handed complete control and was able to dictate policy, he says.

''Also in 2001, the French team stopped its co-operation with us and began a direct relationship with Gabriel Resources. This was not fair as the only reason the team came to Romania was because of our signed agreement and project. But in effect the French went for a more profitable co-operation and signed a contract with the company for all underground excavations. Ms Cauuet did not say she agreed that Carnic should be discharged but she did not disagree either.''

A portion of Cauuet's 2003 Carnic report reads: ''Thanks to its five-year prospecting work (1999-2003) and four-year excavation work (2000-2003) the mining archaeologists team is now able to draft a first summary on the scope, quality and characteristics of the mining vestiges. Approximately 75 kilometres of underground workings dating from various periods of time have been visited and almost 5 kilometres of ancient working have been inventoried. They all reveal impressive quality, are well preserved and all the galleries under study show a specific trapezoidal profile.'' The report went on to say that, ''the gold and silver mines in Alburnus Maior undoubtedly represent one of the most important mining structures of the Roman age, while the excavation now in progress on these sites constitutes the largest preventive archaeological project ever to be carried out in a European mining environment so far.'' The ministry has set aside a corner where some of the galleries will be preserved, Dr Angelescu says, dismissing concerns that the massive explosions necessary for pit mining would disturb them. ''The company says it has new technology that would diminish the impact. It's not like the old fashioned use of dynamite.''

Still, those who want everything to be saved, or ''fundamentalists'' as Angelescu calls them, are not backing down. ''Authorities in Bucharest have sold our mountains. In Rosia Montana only 2.2 hectares have been excavated but 1,100 hectares have been discharged. The only reason that this project could be considered is corruption,'' claims Dr Piso, a sentiment with which Dr Cigudeanu agrees. In 2001, archaeologists and directors of institutions and museums who were working at the Rosia Montana project received monetary bonuses from the company as a reward for their work. ''These bonuses were given right before the beneficiaries write their reports,'' says Dr Cigudeanu.

''We have to look at what we gain and what we lose from such a project. We gain nothing and we lose everything. The state would only take two per cent of the proceeds. That is worse than under colonial times. No one with a sane mind would approve such a thing,'' Dr Piso says.

To date former prime minister, Adrian Nastase has voiced reservations about giving the final approval. His contender in the presidential elections, Traian Basescu, has said he supports the project.