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Excavating a 2,000-year-old Roman “refrigerator”: Surprise to see what was inside

Archaeologists have discovered a ceramic “smart refrigerator” that was used by ancient Roman soldiers to store perishable food. What was inside surprised the experts even more.

Over the past few decades, archaeologists from Bulgaria and Poland have been conducting excavations at the site where the Roman fortress of Novae once stood. The ruins of the fortress can be found in northern Bulgaria along the Danube, where Roman occupiers established and defended the territory’s borders 2,000 years ago.

A team of archaeologists under the direction of Professor Piotr Dyczek of the Southeast European Antiquities Center at the University of Warsaw came across a square box made of thick ceramic plates while exploring beneath the Novae fortress. 

The Roman refrigerator was found inside the army barracks. This is a built-in facility that is installed in a recess in the stone foundation below the building, which means it can only be opened from above. This design ensures that the refrigerator is always insulated by cold ice surrounding 3 sides.



Since Bulgaria experienced sub-zero temperatures for up to five months of the year, Roman soldiers could collect ice or snow to place inside cabinets to keep food cold and fresh throughout the winter.

The researchers were delighted to discover that the ceramic storage box was not empty at all.

In the refrigerator, they found pieces of ceramic vases along with some pieces of grilled bones, probably remnants of cooked food. They also found a bowl containing charcoal, which they believe will be used to repel insects.

Fort Novae was built in the 1st century. It is likely that a refrigerator was also installed during that time.

However, the refrigerator with a clever design is not the only remarkable discovery that Polish and Bulgarian archaeologists excavated during the recent mission. They also found dozens of Roman coins dating from the 3rd and 4th centuries.



“During this time, Novae slowly developed into a civilian city. Thanks to the latest discovery, we were able to gather enough data to reconstruct the historical period of the ancient urban area at that time.” Professor Dyczek shared. He also emphasized that a refrigerator from the 1st century is a particularly rare find because such refrigerators often cannot survive the ravages of time.

Another interesting discovery are the ruins of a Roman house located within the walls of the fortress. Archaeologists have found a number of artifacts inside the building, including some grinding stones, fishing scales and many fragments of ceramic vessels.