During the reign of the Roman emperor Hadrian (117-138 C.E.), two imperial legions were stationed in the province of Judea: Legio X Fretensis in Jerusalem and Legio VI Ferrata in the north. The latter was deployed between the First Jewish Revolt (67-70 C.E.) and the Bar-Kokhba rebellion (132-136 CE), and remained stationed in Judea through most of the 3rd century.

Based in the Jezreel Valley somewhere near Tel Megiddo, the Legio VI Ferrata, or the Sixth Ironclad Legion, was situated to control imperial roads, with direct access to the Galilee and inland valleys of northern Palestine - important centers of the local Jewish population. Until recently, the exact location of the military camp of the Sixth Legion had not been confirmed, but textual evidence placed it in the Jezreel Valley along the road from Caesarea to Beth Shean in the vicinity of Megiddo.

As part of his Ph.D. research at Tel Aviv University, Yotam Tepper identified areas of Roman material culture remains, including coins and roof tiles stamped with the name of the Sixth Legion, concentrated in and around a large agricultural field near Tel Megiddo. Aerial photographs and satellite imagery indicated the presence of a large rectangular structure just beneath the surface surrounded by depressions, leading Tepper to identify the field as the most likely location of the Sixth Legion’s headquarters. On the basis of this preparatory work, Tepper joined up in the summer of 2013 with the Jezreel Valley Regional Project and began excavating the long-lost camp of Legio VI Ferrata.

The team uncovered defensive trenching earthworks next to the foundations of a great wall about 6 meters (20 feet) wide. Inside the wall, the team exposed rooms likely belonging to one of the barracks areas of the camp containing numerous ceramic roof tiles with the legion's mark, coins, fragments of scale armor, and more. They also located what was probably the camp's Via Principalis, or Main Street.

This summer's excavations uncovered remains of the streets running through the imperial camp, as well as water pipes and sewer channels. The excavations also uncovered a large building, possibly the residence of the commander of the fortress. The camp, about 300 meters by 500 meters (984 feet by 1,640 feet) housed about 5,000 Roman soldiers. As the only Roman military camp of its kind uncovered in the eastern half of the Roman Empire, the recent finds contribute to a better understanding of Roman military architecture and engineering.

The dig, now in its second season, was conducted by the W.F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research with support from Israel Antiquities Authority as part of the Jezreel Valley Regional Project.