Kerkhove-Kouter, Archaeological site in Avelgem, Belgium
Kerkhove-Kouter is an archaeological site containing remains from multiple historical periods spread across a large area near the Schelde River. The location has yielded findings from the Mesolithic through Roman periods, including tools, pottery, weapons, and building foundations that document human activity over thousands of years.
The site shows human settlement spanning from the Mesolithic period through Roman times, with the Roman era being especially significant. During Roman rule, this location grew into an administrative hub serving communities along major communication and trade networks.
This location served as a stopping point for travelers and merchants moving along Roman trade routes across the region. The structures reveal how people organized commerce and hospitality in a place that connected different communities.
The site can be observed during visits even though active excavation work is no longer ongoing. Marked areas and accessible paths help visitors explore the location and grasp the scale of the archaeological investigation that once took place here.
Around 1610, approximately 1800 Roman silver coins were found at this spot, a discovery long considered a chance occurrence. This find was the earliest indication that substantial historical remains lay beneath the soil, eventually leading to systematic archaeological investigation centuries later.
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