Charax is the largest Roman military settlement excavated in the Crimea. It was sited on a four-hectare area at the western ridge of Ai Todor, close to the modern tourist attraction of Swallow's Nest. The military camp was founded under Vespasian with the intention of protecting Chersonesos and other Bosporean trade emporiums from the Scythians. The camp was abandoned by the Romans in the mid-3rd century.
