He said that the steelyard weight is disc-shaped with an inscription saying, "Theodoros, the official in charge of the imperial treasury," a marking that tells scholars a great deal about the artifact and its setting.
According to Çelikbaş, being "in charge of the imperial treasury" denotes the center of the Byzantine Empire, namely Istanbul, known as Constantinople before it fell to the Ottomans in 1453.
"From the weight we have, we can say that there was an important trade network in Hadrianopolis," he said.
"This is important data proving that commercial elements were supplied from the capital of the empire here," he added. "The weight we have belongs to the fourth century BC, which indicates about 1,600 years ago from the present."
Excavations in Hadrianopolis over the last year have uncovered structures such as two baths, churches, one defense structure, tombs, an amphitheater, one arched and domed structure, a monumental cultic niche, city walls, villas, and other monumental buildings.
The ancient city is famous for mosaics on the floors of churches, where the biblical rivers Gihon, Pishon, Tigris, and Euphrates, as well as many animals are depicted, such as horses, elephants, panthers, deer, and the griffins-a legendary creature with the head of an eagle and body of a lion.
Any movable artifacts found in the excavations city are taken to the museums in the surrounding provinces, while they are cataloged and preserved, said Çelikbas.
