Ancient tile with footprints left for ages

The discovery of an amazing clay tile with different imprints is reported.

The ancient tile was discovered in the Austrian city of Carnunt, the capital of the province of Upper Pannonia.

There is also a fortress of the XIV Pair Legion, whose branding is embossed on it.

There are traces of Roman army shoe soles and human fingerprints, as well as dog paw prints.

Tiles, bricks and other clay products were left lying in the sun to harden under the influence of heat and wind before the kiln firing began.

This ancient tile found was apparently a test piece.

Based on its condition, legionnaires employed at the legic workshop assessed whether the entire batch of tiles was ready for firing.

Such samplers often became a kind of memorable decoration of Roman barracks, because they contained a set of prints of their inhabitants.