According to officials, a massive ancient Roman artifact was accidentally discovered by a farmer while working in a field in Spain. The artifact remains significant even after millennia.

On July 1, El Día de Córdoba reported that the farmer had unearthed the enormous stone relic while uprooting an olive tree in a grove near Baena.

A photo shared by the Baena Town Hall reveals that the artifact has a roughly circular shape. Its side displays at least three large grooves, possibly resembling cracks.

Carved into the top is a circular track, resembling an upside-down mushroom with its stalk trimmed too short.

Town officials stated in a news release that the weathered stone is from an ancient Roman mill utilized for pressing olives into olive oil. These mills, known as “trapetum,” originated in Greece and spread throughout the ancient Roman Empire.

According to El Día de Córdoba, workers would grind the olives using a second piece that fit inside the bowl-like groove and could be rotated with a long stick. The oil mill stands approximately 3 feet tall and spans around 4 feet across, weighing about 6,600 pounds, as reported by Diario Córdoba.

Archaeologist José Antonio Morena mentioned that the millstone dates back around 2,000 years, indicating that Baena’s olive groves were cultivated, harvested, and exported during ancient Roman times.

Despite the passage of millennia, Baena continues to thrive in olive oil production, as confirmed by the town hall. The city is surrounded by olive groves and even features an Olive Grove and Oil Museum dedicated to the local history of this crop.

Town officials have announced that the oil mill will undergo restoration, analysis, and relocation to the Municipal Historical Museum of Baena. Baena is situated in the Córdoba province, approximately 230 miles southwest of Madrid.