Articles by Tatjana Koprivica

The Authors consider the interest that Italian government institutions have demonstrated since the late 19th century to the present, in the archaeological exploration of Doclea, the most significant Roman city in Montenegro. It points out the link existing between those interests and the Italian foreign policy towards the Balkans, as well as to the discontinuities in Italy’s interest in Doclea and clarification of the reasons for such happenings. The activities of the Italian scientists are set forth, as they individually or as participants of archaeological missions contributed to the research into Doclea and its presentation (Giovanni Battista de Rossi, Guido Cora, Roberto Paribeni, Dante Vaglieri, Piero Sticotti). Attention is also drawn to the negative aspect of the Italian interests in Doclea, specifically the removal of artefacts from the site during the time of the Italian occupation of Montenegro (1941 to 1943).

This paper presents a historical and epigraphical survey of the inscriptions from Doclea. Due to devastation and inadequate protection by the relevant institutions, a large number of inscriptions have disappeared or have been destroyed by the local population and irresponsible researchers. Bearing that in mind, every new inscription is important for understanding the history and everyday life in Roman Doclea.

The study of the architecture of the main public buildings of Doclea is being carried out on the basis of bibliographical and archival sources, integrated with the direct analysis of the existing structures. Research aimed at finding documents of the earlier explorers of Doclea, as well as documentary photographs, are particularly important. We also analyse the main buildings of Doclea in the context of Roman architecture, seeking to identify local and regional features. An analysis of the existing structures, combining archaeological and architectural methods, according to the most modern theories of the so-called archaeology of architecture, is essential. This same approach was applied to the monuments in the forum area and in the main thermae, where we have collected a series of data that we are now processing. The ultimate goal of our research is to produce a 3D reconstruction of the main buildings.

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