Aventicum

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amphitheater

Aventicum was the capital of the Roman Civitas Helvetiorum in the Swiss plateau and the political, religious and economic center of the Helvetii . The Roman city was on the site of today's Avenches . At its heyday in the 1st to 3rd centuries AD, it was the largest city on Swiss soil and at times had more than 20,000 inhabitants. Finds from the numerous excavations can be viewed in the Musée Romain in the tower above the main entrance of the amphitheater .

location

and display information about the image
February 2012: East Gate

Aventicum was on the southern edge of the Broye plain, south of the Murten lake at around 445 m above sea level. M. on the Roman military road, which led from Lake Geneva or from the Great Saint Bernard through the Swiss Plateau to Vindonissa or Augusta Raurica . The town was raised slightly so that it would not be hit by the frequent floods of the Broye. It took up a large part of the wide, north-west open basin between the city hill of today's Avenches and the east adjoining Molasse plateau of Donatyre.

history

The beginnings

The origins of the place go back to an oppidum founded by the Helvetians in the 1st century BC , which has not yet been precisely located. Until now, this settlement was thought to be on the forest hill Bois de Châtel around 2 km south of Avenches. There are also some sources that settle the oppidum on today's city hill - that is, much closer to the Roman city.

The actual foundation of Aventicum has not yet been precisely dated. Various sources put it on the time a few years after the birth of Christ. At En Chaplix, however, a tomb was recently found that is dated to the year 15 BC, which is why the city could have been founded almost two decades before the new era. This date points to the Augustan Alpine campaign under Tiberius and Drusus 16/15 BC. To Christ.

The name Aventicum is derived from the Swiss spring goddess Aventia . It gradually developed into the center of the Helvetii, who inhabited the Swiss plateau between Lake Geneva and Lake Constance . The Civitas of Helvetii was then part of the province of Gallia Belgica . The name of the city at that time is also not certain; it could have been called Forum Tiberii . Evidence for the great importance of the city already in the early days and its strong ties to the imperial capital include numerous relics of life-size and larger-than-life marble portraits of the Julian-Claudian imperial house from urban Roman production, which were found in the forum area and in the religious district on the western edge of the city. Little is known about the city from the period up to AD 69.

The Helvetii uprising in 69 AD

Under Roman rule after the occupation of the Alpine foothills, the self-government of the Helvetii continued to exist. The people's community ( civitas ) was further divided into four sub-tribes ( pagi ). The civitas regulated the tax system autonomously and provided a militia that was responsible for border protection and maintaining internal security.

The Helvetian independence ended in the course of the events after the death of Nero in 68 AD. The Helvetians supported the new Emperor Galba and therefore came into conflict with the Roman troops in their area, because they supported the general Vitellius , who also aspired to the Empire . When Galba was murdered in Rome and Otho was installed as emperor in his place, the Roman legions in Germania prepared for a procession to Rome to bring their candidate to the throne. In this context, there was an armed clash between Swiss groups and the Legio XXI Rapax from Vindonissa (Windisch). In response, the Roman general Caecina , who had come to Helvetia with the Upper Germanic army, cracked down on them. The Swiss settlements in Aargau were looted and destroyed. As the Helvetii resisted, thousands of them were killed or sold as slaves under martial law. Eventually the Roman troops occupied Aventicum, which ended the uprising. The extent to which the city was destroyed is controversial. Aventicum was subsequently converted into a Roman colony. The 21st Legion in Vindonissa was replaced by the Legio XI Claudia after the riots .

Heyday

Remains of the Cigognier temple

The heyday began around 70 AD when Emperor Vespasian , who presumably spent part of his youth in the city, elevated Aventicum to the rank of a colony under Roman law. According to an inscription on a stone found in the 17th century, it is assumed that the city was then called Colonia Pia Flavia Constans Emerita Helvetiorum Foederata ; however, it is not entirely impossible that the inscription could be a forgery.

Under the Romans, Aventicum was ruled by two magistrates (duoviri), two aediles and two prefects. The Duoviri exercised the office of priest on the one hand, and on the other hand also the office of mayor and judge. Around 89 AD Aventicum was incorporated into the province of Germania superior . During this time there was also a lot of construction activity. The city was surrounded by a large curtain wall and, in addition to the residential and commercial buildings, large representative buildings were built, including the amphitheater, the Roman theater and the Granges-des-Dîmes and Cigognier temples. The city drew its water from wells and an aqueduct that carried spring water from the Arbogne to Aventicum.

Aventicum quickly grew into an important political, administrative, religious and economic center. The city had over 20,000 inhabitants and was more than four times the size of today's Avenches. Probably since the beginning of the 3rd century the city was also the seat of a bishop. Two early Christian churches, Saint-Martin and Saint-Symphorien, are documented, the remains of which were only completely removed in the late Middle Ages. There were also probably two other churches.

The decline

East gate of Aventicum
Enclosing wall at the east gate of Aventicum

The slow decline of Aventicum began with the first incursions of the Alamanni in 259 and 260 ( Limesfall ). The destruction was probably not as great as previously assumed, and the city was largely rebuilt. According to coin finds, it still had an important role in the 4th century. To secure the city, a fort was built on the Bois de Châtel.

A second invasion by the Alamanni in 354 led to extensive destruction of the Roman city. The rest of the residents sought refuge on the hill where today's town is. A new fortified settlement was re-established on the site of the Roman city in the 5th century. Aventicum remained the bishop's seat even during these troubled times and the ongoing threat from the Alamanni.

The final decline only followed in the second half of the 6th century, when Bishop Marius moved his seat to Lausanne . Aventicum sank into insignificance and lost its status as the main town, since it was now in the border area between the Burgundy Empire and the Empire of the Alemanni. The history books are silent about the following time. The settlement was probably inhabited permanently. The remains of Aventicum served as a quarry from then on. Only with the re-establishment of Avenches in the 11th century and the relocation of the settlement to the city hill did a new era of prosperity begin.

The "rediscovery" of Aventicum

The gold bust of Marcus Aurelius

During the Middle Ages , the former importance of Aventicum was forgotten. What was left of stones was used for the construction of churches and houses in the vicinity. It was not until the 16th century that the discovery of Latin inscriptions made people aware of the past. Further finds led to the first targeted excavations in the years 1783–86. A first museum with the found objects was opened in 1824. This became the property of the Canton of Vaud in 1838 and was moved to the former bishop's tower from the 11th century near the amphitheater.

The Pro Aventico association founded in 1885 (now a foundation) was commissioned to manage and support the numerous excavations since the end of the 19th century. The discovery of a gold bust of Marcus Aurelius (found in 1939, height 33.5 cm, weight: 1,589 kg) in the sewer system at the foot of the Cigognier temple is remarkable. It was probably hidden there from the raiding Alemanni. The most important finds include the head of a Minerva statue (acrolite), numerous fragments of statues from the Julio-Claudian imperial family and more than 100 mosaics that have been found to date.

City layout and shape

Roman theater
Roman theater

At the time of Emperor Vespasian, Aventicum was surrounded by a large curtain wall and a moat in front of it. The wall was 5.2 km long, with the battlements around 7 m high and over 2 m thick at the base. It was reinforced with 73 towers and had two main gates on the Roman military road in the west and east as well as further gates in the northeast, north and south. The curtain wall encompassed an area of ​​around 2 km², of which, however, even at the heyday of Aventicum, no more than a quarter was built over. The course of the curtain wall (in the south and east on the Donatyre plateau, in the north in the Broye plain and in the west outside of today's city hill) can still be seen in various places.

The actual city was laid out in the typical chessboard-like floor plan, with the main street having a width of 9 m; the central north-south axis was also of a similar width. Through the road system, Aventicum was divided into 48 (probably even 60) so-called insulae (residential quarters) with an area of ​​70 × 110 m, but the settlement extended far beyond this chessboard-shaped core zone. At the intersection of the two main axes was the forum, next to it the forum baths and south of the square the basilica and the curia. The villas of the wealthier citizens were built to the west of the north-south axis and on the elevated positions. The artisanal quarters, especially those businesses that impaired the city through noise and stench (potters, brickworkers, tanners, glassblowers, blacksmiths, foundries) are more likely to be located in the northern and northeastern part of the city.

Particularly noteworthy is a complex of buildings known as the "Palais de Derrière la Tour", which was built on the north-western edge of the island grid. A three-part system stretched over an area of ​​2 to 3 hectares, consisting of an economic section (including a safe-like building) and two living / representation areas with a bathing area. They were connected to one another via porticos and courtyards. The main wing of the complex, located on the western edge of the complex (external dimensions approx. 110 × 80 m), consisted of a peristyle framed by porticos, to which building lines were connected on three sides, while the fourth side had a summer triclinium with a mosaic in the middle . Opposite the triclinium , on the other side of the courtyard, in the middle of the main wing was a representation hall, which was adorned with a figural mosaic (area: 19x12m!) That was discovered in the 18th century and no longer preserved, the center of which was an octagonal fountain was taken. The most important finds from this extraordinary complex include the remains of a Roman water organ ( Hydraulis ), a bed decorated with bronze fittings and the famous relief of the she- wolf suckling Romulus and Remus (old find).

The large representative buildings were located in the southwest of the ancient city. This included the Granges-des-Dîmes temple, which was built in the early 2nd century on the site of a sanctuary that was still held in Celtic tradition. It stood on a podium with a flight of stairs and a cella (core of the sanctuary) surrounded by a portico and was converted into a church in the early Middle Ages. Nearby was the monumental temple complex Cigognier, also on a podium and equipped with a large forecourt, which was surrounded on three sides by colonnades. The temple was believed to be dedicated to Jupiter and other local deities. The Roman theater, which was about 140 m further to the south-east and had space for around 8,000-10,000 spectators, was oriented towards the Cigognier Temple.

The amphitheater was built at the end of the 1st century a little further away from the city on the eastern slope of the hill of Avenches. After being enlarged at the beginning of the 2nd century, it had 33 tiers and a capacity of 14,000 to 16,000 people. The main entrance in the east (on the site of today's tower) was equipped with a monumental facade with three arches.

Aventicum also had two port facilities with which the city had a connection via the Neuchâtel and Bielersee to the northeast to the Aare and thus to the Rhine . One port was on the south bank of Lake Murten, the other only a little north of the city at the end of a canal that also led to the lake. These facilities lead to the conclusion that Aventicum was an important transshipment center in the goods trade. In the northeast in front of the city were the tombs, including several monumental mausoleums in the area of ​​En Chaplix.

Remains of the former Aventicum

In addition to the excavation objects exhibited in the Roman Museum near the amphitheater, a number of other important facilities can be visited in the open air:

  • the amphitheater at the eastern exit of the old town of Avenches. It is the best preserved amphitheater in Switzerland and has been extensively restored since 1986. The Avenches Opera Festival has been held there every summer since 1995.
  • the Roman theater (Théâtre romain) at the foot of the hill, on the southern edge of the former Aventicum
  • Remains of the temple complex Cigognier, so named because of the only standing, 12-meter-high column that used to carry a stork's nest (from French cigogne = stork)
  • Remains of the thermal baths
  • Remains of the Capitol
  • Remains of the former perimeter wall on the level between Avenches and Villarepos with the restored Tornallaz tower and the east gate
  • The church of Donatyre was built in the 11th century with stones from the former aventicum .

literature

Web links

Commons : Aventicum  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 46 ° 52 ′ 52 "  N , 7 ° 2 ′ 33"  E ; CH1903:  five hundred sixty-nine thousand eight hundred and five  /  one hundred and ninety-two thousand two hundred ninety-eight