Rome · c. 27 BC to AD 14 · Baños de Fortuna, Murcia, Spain
Giant Roman inscription, possibly from Augustus' reign, found at Spanish spa baths
A reused stone block with letters up to 23 cm tall belongs to a text researchers estimate ran at least 4.8 metres, at the Roman Baths of Fortuna in Murcia.
Baños de Fortuna, Spain Archaeologists have found part of an unusually large Roman inscription at the ancient spa baths of Fortuna, in south-east Spain. Its letters are up to 23 cm tall. The researchers estimate that the full text ran for at least 4.8 metres. They think it may date from the reign of Augustus.
The surviving piece is a stone block about 90 cm long. It had been reused in a later wall at the Roman Baths of Fortuna. Historian Gonzalo Matilla of the University of Murcia directed the excavation. The block is now going to the Archaeological Museum of Murcia for study and conservation.
Letters in two sizes
The stone carries letters in two sizes. The larger ones are about 23 cm high and the smaller ones about 13 cm. According to Matilla, few inscriptions with letters of this size survive in the Iberian Peninsula.
The size of the lettering suggests the text was meant to be seen as part of an imposing architectural ensemble. That would set it apart from ordinary funerary or household inscriptions. The team found it in the northern part of the complex. They were clearing structural remains there and tracing the edges of the ancient buildings.
Preliminary interpretations suggest the inscription may date from the reign of Augustus, Rome's first emperor, who ruled from 27 BC to AD 14. The exact date is still uncertain. So is the inscription's original position. Because the block was reused in a later wall, its findspot does not show where it first stood.
The surviving text is incomplete. The researchers have not yet worked out its full wording, or which person or institution it named. Further study may show whether it honoured a benefactor, recorded a dedication or belonged to some other kind of monumental public display.
A sanctuary built around thermal springs
The Roman Baths of Fortuna grew up around natural thermal springs, whose mineral-rich water drew visitors for centuries. The site lies a few kilometres north of the modern town of Fortuna, in the region of Murcia. Systematic excavation began in 1990, at first on buildings interpreted as lodgings for bathers. In 1999 excavators located the ancient spring itself.
Later work revealed rock-cut features, water channels, tanks and structures belonging to a healing sanctuary. Among them is a monumental nymphaeum. This was a structure built around water, which had religious or symbolic meaning in Roman culture. The main Roman building phases date to the early imperial period. Later occupation and alterations make it hard to reconstruct how the baths looked at any single moment.
This season the excavators also fully cleared the bathing pool, exposing its complete outline. Work around the central building made its limits clearer. The regional government of Murcia has put €150,000 into the project. The money covers excavation, recovery and conservation of the remains, and measures to improve how the site is presented in future.
The baths have been protected as a Bien de Interés Cultural, a Spanish heritage listing, since 2016. The mayor of Fortuna, Catalina Herrero, visited the dig as the inscribed block was removed. She was joined by Patricio Sánchez, Murcia's director general of cultural heritage, and culture councillor Juan Manuel Soler.
Sánchez called the find important for its size and for the historical information it may offer. He said moving it to the museum will let researchers document the inscription more fully. It will also secure its long-term preservation.
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