An archaeologist at the University of Leicester claims to have discovered evidence of the use of chemical weapons during the Roman Empire. The main points of the report, made by the researcher at the meeting of the American Archaeological Institute, are given in a press release on the university website.
Researcher Simon James (Simon James) was studying the ancient city of Dura Europos, located on the banks of the Euphrates River. In 256 AD, it was besieged by the Persian army. There are no records of the course of the siege left, so archaeologists have to reconstruct the course of events, focusing exclusively on the bodies and objects found during the excavations.
Scientists have found out that the Persians tried to bring down the walls of the city, digging under them. The Romans, in turn, also dug passages to prevent the Persians from advancing inland. In one of these tunnels in 1930, archaeologists discovered the remains of the bodies of 20 Roman soldiers with weapons and full uniforms. James decided to find out exactly how these people died.
In his opinion, in the last minutes before the death of the Romans, they were in the passage they dug. An analysis of the location of the corpses showed that someone had folded them so that they partially blocked the opening of the passage. James believes it was the Persians who dug from the opposite side. To explain how 20 people could have died at once, the researcher proposed a theory about the use of chemical weapons.
Traces of bitumen and sulfur crystals were found in the "Roman" tunnel. When ignited, these substances give off thick toxic fumes. James believes that the Persians installed a brazier in their tunnel, placed bitumen and sulfur on it, and when the Romans broke through the earthen wall with the help of furs, they sent the deadly fumes towards the defenders of the city. Within minutes, they were all dead.
Despite the Persians' familiarity with chemical weapons, they were unable to bring down the walls of Dura Europos with the help of dug tunnels. Nevertheless, the Persians captured the city, but how exactly they were able to do this is still unclear.