Traismauer Castle

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Traismauer Castle
Alternative name Augustianis
limes Limes Noricus
section Route 1
Dating (occupancy) Julian Claudian or Flavian,
1st to 5th century AD
Type Alenkastell (Auxilia)
unit a) Legio XIIII Gemina ?,
b) Ala I Hispanorum Auriana  ?
c) Ala I Augusta Thracum ,
d) Equites Dalmatae
size 3.75-4.1 ha
Construction a) wood-earth fort (multi-phase),
b) stone fort (multi- phase)
State of preservation Square system with truncated corners,
east gate integrated in the medieval Wienertor (Römertor),
northern horseshoe tower
almost completely preserved,
two fan towers (SW / SO corner) partly. preserved,
a late antique burgus or remnant fort
was integrated into the medieval city palace
place Traismauer
Geographical location 48 ° 20 '0 "  N , 15 ° 43' 59"  E Coordinates: 48 ° 20 '0 "  N , 15 ° 43' 59"  E hf
Previous Burgus Hollenburg (west)
Subsequently Zwentendorf Fort (east)
Limes3.png
Sketch of the location of Steinlager II under the old town of Traismauer
The city palace of Traismauer, view from the north
Remnants of the wall from the front of the fan-shaped tower on the southeast corner, above the brick wall from the time of the Turkish wars in the 17th century
The southern inner tower in Kirchengasse according to the findings from 1980 (A. Gattringer)
The late antique masonry in the city palace
The Vienna or Römertor, view from the east
The high bar or hunger tower, view from the northeast
Watercolor of the medieval St. Pölten Gate with the southwestern fan tower around 1850
Votive picture depicting the Traismauer market around 1668, on the far right the SE fan tower (J. Offenberger)
Floor plan of the Principia with Carolingian burial chamber after Johann Offenberger
Cadaloc's burial chamber under the parish church of St. Ruprecht
Preserved Roman fountain in the park by the Wienertor

The Traismauer fort was part of the security systems of the Roman Danube Limes in Austria and is located in the Traismauer municipality , St. Pölten district , Lower Austria.

The Noric cavalry camp was probably occupied by Roman troops from the 1st to the 5th century. Today the fort area is built over by the old town of Traismauer. Significant remains of the late antique fort (see Stone Period II) have been preserved in the medieval fortifications and in the crypt of St. Rupert's Church.

Surname

According to the Tabula Peutingeriana on the connecting road St. Pölten / Aelium Cetium - Vienna / Vindobona, the Trigisamum station (= River Traisen) was located near today's Herzogenburg , which until 1949 was equated with the fort, although Theodor Mommsen was already in the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum (CIL) had pleaded for Augustianis. This place was probably just the name of a ford over the Traisen.

In ancient sources the fort is otherwise only mentioned in the Notitia Dignitatum . The name Augustianis (adjective formation for the name of Augustus ) derives with a probability bordering on certainty from the riding troop of the Ala I Augusta Thracum , whose stationing is attested here by inscriptions and brick stamps.

location

Traismauer is located on the southwestern edge of the Tullner Basin , directly at the exit of the Traisental. To the east, the landscape is shaped by the Danube meadows and the Traisental. The latter is enclosed in the east by hill country and in the west by the Dunkelsteinerwald. The Traisen River is the only tributary of the Danube that leads into the eastern Limestone Alps. Several easily passable crossings in the east lead to the Vienna Basin . The highest peaks in the plain around Traismauer are the Venusberg and the Schullerberg, two foothills of the Vienna Woods cut off by the Perschling .

The fort itself was conveniently located east of the former confluence of the Traisen in the Danube, directly at the intersection of several roads with the river, which was also used as a transport route at the time. Its location was on the lower terrace to the Danube and the Traisen, however, in an extremely flood-prone position, as evidenced by the pointed ditches, which are evidently repeatedly filled with alluvial deposits. The reason for this is probably a deterioration in the climate that began in the 2nd century AD, which led to an increase in flood disasters and thus inevitably to a continuous rise in the groundwater level.

Its remains are now completely under the medieval town center. In the north, the rectangular floor plan was based on the ancient bank of the Danube, in the west it met the course of the Traisen river. The route of the main camp road, the via principalis , continued to the west and crossed its floodplain. A “stone pillar” once stood here, which is first mentioned in a document from the 9th century (columna lapidea) , probably a Roman milestone. It was removed during gravel mining in the 1940s. At this point the Limesstraße probably branched off from the road leading to St. Pölten / Cetium . A Roman watchtower is said to have stood near the column. However, an archaeologist's inspection of the corridor did not produce any relevant results. The fort was part of the Limes of the Noricum province . After the division of the province in the course of the administrative reform of Diocletian , Augustianis fell to the province of Noricum ripense .

development

The altar inscription of ala I Augusta Thracum from around 140-144 AD was known to the Bavarian humanist Johannes Aventinus as the only Roman inscription stone recorded for Lower Austria in the 16th century . It is reported on it that this unit dedicated the altar to Emperor Antoninus Pius . Today it is walled in above the entrance to the city palace. The tombstone of a veteran of this troop was discovered in a gravel pit in the village of Gemeinlebarn in 1828 and then also taken to the Lapidarium of Traismau Castle, where it can be viewed today (see gallery below). Two years later it became known that very old walls were said to have been visible on the Venusberg. The most significant Roman finds were made during the construction of the railway line in 1884–85. It was not only possible to uncover some foundation segments of fort buildings, but also ancient graves and their additions such as B. to recover coins, ceramics, glass as well as bronze and iron fragments. Adalbert Dungel and the Wolfram family did their best to secure these finds . A gravestone discovered in 1885 while the railway was being built was destroyed. In the course of the 20th century, numerous excavations and chance finds made it possible to obtain a comprehensive picture of the fort, vicus and burial grounds.

The geographical location of Augustianis was strategically ideal for the construction of a fort. In the 1st century, the Roman soldiers encountered an unregulated stream with a wide, impenetrable belt of alluvial forests. It was possible to cross the river at Traismauer and Tulln. Prehistoric trade routes have already been proven there. Here at Traismauer an important north-south connection (Traisen-, Kamptal) intersected with the Limes road along the Danube. In the north the square was secured by the Danube and in the northwest by the Traisen. A trade route (iron and salt) leading from the Murtal in Styria met the Danube at Traismauer, crossed it and joined two old long-distance routes on the north bank, the so-called Manhartsberg line and the Kamptalweg. A crossing of the Danube, presumed to be in the vicinity of the camp, also enabled the construction of a road connection to the south, to Aelium Cetium / St. Pölten. Based on the prehistoric finds, this street is believed to be on the right bank of the Traisen.

From here one ruled the inland and could immediately recognize possible enemy movements on the north bank of the river (mouth of the Kamp ). In addition, the hill country of the 345 m high Seelackenberg advances far towards the Danube and closes off the southern Tullnerfeld from the west. Since the elevations of the Venus and Schuller Mountains provided a good view of the interior of the camp, the crew was at a considerable disadvantage in the event of a siege. At this bottleneck Augustianis probably acted as a connection point between Fort Favianis (Mautern) and Fort Comagena (Tulln).

Dating

The excavations in the second half of the 20th century provided concrete clues as to when the camp was built. In his latest publication on Mautern Fort, Stefan Groh tried to work out a kind of chronology of the time of its creation by analyzing the distribution of coins based on the percentage of Aes coins at the respective fort locations. Above all, the Traismauer fort appears to be one of the earliest foundations on the Noric Limes. In theory, it could have already existed during the four-emperor year . According to evidence of the finds made in the process, the fort was probably built using wood-earth technology at the time of the rule of the Flavian dynasty or possibly even under Emperor Claudius (41-54), but was destroyed again by fire towards the end of the 1st century Evidence of a 20–60 cm thick layer of fire). According to the inscription on Traismau Castle, the new stone building was completed around 140–144 AD, and it was most likely carried out by members of the Ala I Augusta Thracum . What is certain is that the complex was rebuilt several times up to the 4th century or adapted to the innovations in late antique fortress construction. Most of the sections of the city wall that are still visible today were built in the 17th century at the time of the Turkish wars.

Fort

After a detailed examination of the older wall structure and comparison with the land register plan by Eduard Novotny, he came to the conclusion that the area of ​​the medieval town center was largely identical to the Roman cavalry fort. Today's Wienerstraße also almost entirely coincides with the via principalis of the former equestrian camp. According to Novotny, the fort covered an area of ​​approx. 4.7 hectares. He assumed the praetorium (in comparison with Ala Nova ) to be under the south aisle of the parish church. The archaeologist Erich Polaschek (1885–1974) also recognized the enclosure and area of ​​the former fort in the Traismauer house plan. In addition, based on the building inscription, which was already known at the time, he took the view that an earlier camp must have existed here in front of the stone warehouse. A total of five more or less clearly distinguishable Roman construction phases, three wood-earth and two stone construction phases, could be determined. The earliest camp construction was possibly located a little further to the east than its successors. The filling of the foundation pits suggests that the wood-earth fort was destroyed (burned down) as planned in the course of renovation work. After that, its area was leveled and then the stone fort I was built from scratch. The construction of the northern horseshoe tower (hunger or bar tower) was probably under Emperor Valentinian I (364–375)

In the late 4th or early 5th century, the camp burned down almost completely. An equestrian statue on the camp's forum was also destroyed. According to the findings at the southern burial ground and at the Principia , a larger settlement of clay-plastered wooden buildings may have existed there until the late 5th century (discovery of a copper coin from the time of Justin II ). Hannsjörg Ubl thinks it is possible that a settlement with a small town character has developed in the ruins of the camp, which has spread to the east. Herma Stiglitz further assumes that Augustianis belonged to the Romanesque oppida who were tribute to the Rugians , although the place is not mentioned in the Vita Sancti Severini . Perhaps by that time the settlement had already become completely meaningless. The fort area was resettled in the 8th century (first documented mention of Treisma around 799).

Wood-earth period

The remains of the early, probably two-phase, wood and earth fort were cut several times during the excavations ( barracks blocks ); the exact extent is still uncertain, but it was probably a little smaller than the following stone fort I. From 1971, findings have been known to have been a pointed ditch in Florianigasse No. 1 35 m from the north wall, the bottom of which is approx. 0.8 m was below the water table and 1.7 m below the bottom of the outer trench of the stone fort. Offenberger saw this ditch as part of the fortification system of the wood-earth fort, which was obviously very close to the Danube. Furthermore, the floor discoloration of an antique wooden building next to the parish church (barracks block), which can be dated to the Flavian period due to the ceramics found (sigillates). Finds from the time of the earliest fortifications were found among others. a. also in Wiener Strasse No. 93 and in 1975 in the nave of the parish church, where mortar screeds and sill beam underpinnings of a multi-room half-timbered building (Principia) could also be assigned to the wood-earth period.

In 1991 the eastern front was cut in an emergency excavation. Parts of a four-meter-wide clay wall were uncovered, which was secured against slipping with a horizontally laid wooden frame grate. Behind the wall ran an eight-meter-wide gravel road, Wallstrasse ( via vallaris ). It is difficult to relate the two finds. The northern Spitzgraben extends to the east wall of the fort and is approx. 180 m away from it. In addition, the remains of a barracks building with a portico in front could be examined. The building was destroyed by fire. It is believed that the wood and earth fort went through several construction phases.

Stone period I

Although several phases of renovation could be determined at Stone Fort I, it is difficult to distinguish between them in terms of time. Due to a layer of fire between the find horizons of stone camps I and II, one can probably assume a kind of intermediate phase (probably caused by extensive destruction as a result of the marcomannic wars ). The fortification of the stone fort I lies within the medieval walls and forms an irregular, westward warped rectangle with an area of ​​about 3.75 hectares. The north-west corner was probably completely destroyed over the centuries by a change in the course of the Traisen. Due to the rise in groundwater in the 2nd century AD, the northern front of the early stone camp could no longer be built exactly above that of the wood-earth fort, but had to be retracted somewhat. An intermediate tower with a rectangular floor plan was also discovered on the south wall.

  • The north wall is likely to stretch west to the north front of the castle building.
  • The exact position of the west wall and the north-west corner up to the porta principalis sinistra is unclear . But it probably corresponds to the course of the medieval fortification.
  • The southern city wall, which is still partially preserved today, does not coincide with the foundations of the fort wall. This fact was confirmed in 1980 by excavations in the area of ​​Kirchengasse No. 2 (discovery of the middle imperial inner tower).

The fort defense could be examined here using a more than one meter wide foundation segment made of mortar masonry. In addition, the above-mentioned inner tower from the time of Steinkastell I was also attached here. It is also a fact that the south wall coming from the west wall did not turn off at an exact right angle, but had a blunt corner. It was also about five meters behind the medieval fence. In 1991, during an excavation on the eastern flank of the camp, it was found that the stone wall cut into the eastern cheek of the wood-earth wall. Several stone slabs just connected to the foundation step showed that here the entire berm (strip of land between the wall and the ditch) must have been paved with such slabs. The pointed trenches under the late antique fan towers could also be proven here. In 1978 the remains of the wall of the eastern gate system were discovered, but in late antiquity they had obviously been demolished down to the lowest stone masses according to plan. The right gate tower was about 5.4 m long, the left one was offset to the north by 5.5 m. Its wall thickness was 1.4 m. A brick built into the foundation bore the stamp of Legio XIIII Gemina . The late antique gate has been raised a little further to the east.

Stone period II

Even in late antiquity, there was still brisk building activity in Augustianis . However, the quality of the masonry clearly decreased. The storage wall and gates were equipped or "modernized" with horseshoe and fan-shaped towers. At the same time, the fort was enlarged to about 4.1 hectares to the west, as demonstrated by some anomalies in the tower axes to the decumanus maximus . The moat of stone fort I was built over by a fan tower on the southwest corner. An inwardly open late antique fan-shaped tower was also located at the southeast corner. A fan tower is also suspected at the northeast corner. Here in the city palace there was once again masonry from late antique times, which could possibly be the remains of a burgus or remnant fort built in the final phase of the fort for the greatly reduced occupation , which is also the case with other forts on the Noric and Upper Pannonian Limes ( Zeiselmauer , Wallsee and Rusovce ) was the case. Instead of screed floors, the buildings of this time often only found rammed earth floors. The fort then seems to have been destroyed by a fire on the threshold of the 5th century. Afterwards, a poorly equipped civilian settlement made up of simple wickerwork huts was built in the ruins of the Germanic tribes who were presumably settled here as federates.

The warehouse area is still clearly visible in the city map today. During the excavations it was found that the Traismauer wall of the Middle Ages even outgrew the fort area a little. However, some sections of the fort wall were probably still in use until the High Middle Ages and even into the 18th century (here in particular the fan-shaped towers). Johann Offenberger believed that these late antique towers are still depicted on late medieval wood engravings.

Towers and gates

Roman gate

The eastern gate of Steinlager I was provided with square side towers. Here, the main road of the camp, the via principalis , led in the direction of the camp village, in which isolated findings from the 4th century could be found. The right tower was 5.4 m in length, the left was offset by about 5.5 m to the north. Its masonry was 1.4 m wide. One of the bricks found in the foundation bears the stamp of the legio XIIII Gemina . On the foundations of the north tower, two pointed ditches that were created at different times could be observed, which were later rendered inoperative by flood deposits.

The "Wiener-" or "Römertor" in its present form from the 16th or 17th century was completely renovated in 1976. When the modern plaster was removed, it was found that the masonry of the late antique east gate ( Porta principales dextra ), recognizable by the typical joint lines, scaffolding holes, etc., was still preserved up to the second floor. Two horseshoe towers flank the actual gate. The ground floor is surrounded by a round cornice. Traces of the fort wall were also still visible on both sides. They indicated that the U-towers are set back a bit. In late antiquity, the gate system was evidently moved a little further to the east. To the west of the gate, several rammed earth floors and a wall running from west to east were explored. The rectangular gate tower in the middle dates from the Middle Ages.

Southern intermediate tower

The intermediate tower, discovered in 1980 on the southern fort wall (Kirchengasse No. 2), was attached to the inside and measured 2.3 × 3 m square. Possibly it was part of the southern gate system ( Porta decumana ) of stone warehouse I. Its masonry made of rubble stones was 0.6 m wide. The pebble foundation was deepened 0.5 m. The interior plastering of the tower was applied in two layers. The two floor screed layers lay on top of a 0.4 m thick layer of rubble. On the screed there was still an approx. 0.2 m thick layer of clay, probably a late antique leveling and leveling layer.

High bar or hunger tower

After investigations on the foundations of this tower, which was remodeled in the Middle Ages, it was also possible to prove unequivocally Roman times. It is a late antique horseshoe tower (Valentine?) That was built over a square intermediate tower of the stone fort I. A wooden structure was removed to the east of the tower in 1998–1999; whereby an area of ​​6 × 3.5 m could be examined more precisely archaeologically (BDA, Johannes-Wolfgang Neugebauer, Ch. Biesl). At a depth of about 2.3 m, a layer of parallel-laid timber was found. These are seen as the substructure of an older fortification (earth wall). Today is u. a. The Traismauer Local History Museum is also housed in this tower. Antique sculptures, brick stamps and various small finds are exhibited here. Inscription stones were attached to the outer wall. In 2013 the plastered areas on the tower were preserved.

Fan towers

In the Venusberg Strasse, opposite the intersection with Kirchengasse, the foundation walls of the fan-shaped tower from the 4th century have been preserved at the southwest corner of the camp. You can determine its position based on the curvature of the house at Venusbergstrasse 10. Its masonry could be proven to a depth of four meters during the installation of a cellar. It was 1.5 m (north tower cheek) and 1.8 m wide. Scaffolding holes were made in the wall at irregular intervals 1.9 m above the floor. The base of the neck measured 2.2 m, the inner area about nine meters. The tower had a fireplace in the middle and was equipped with a terrazzo floor. The south corner of the tower could no longer be excavated.

The foundation consists of rubble stones and was carefully mortared down to the bottom. Traces of the two pointed trenches of Steinkastell I, which were also filled with flood deposits, were still found under the fan-shaped tower. In the later period it was perhaps used as a dwelling for the civilian population, as the discovery of two loom weights suggests. A layer of rubble suggests that the tower quickly fell into disrepair after the Roman occupation left. As a result of a flood, its southwest corner finally collapsed. In the 14th and 15th centuries the remains of the wall were integrated into the St. Pöltner Tor (also known as "Wall" or "Neutor").

At the southeast corner, a remnant of the wall of the front of a fan-shaped tower has also been preserved and is still partially visible. The brick wall, which was hastily erected to protect against the Turkish invasions, is superimposed on a semicircular rubble foundation. In a painting from the 19th century you can also see a semicircular, protruding tower at this point. On a votive picture from 1668 there is evidently a fan-shaped tower of Roman design, which is open inwards.

Burgus

The archbishop's castle (so-called "castle in the wall") was built around 1247 on the north-west corner that was washed away by the Traisen. When the city castle was converted into a museum for early history and during explorations in the 1980s, it was possible to identify Roman buildings (including in the inner courtyard of the castle), which were obviously part of a late antique castle or remnant fort. This Roman predecessor building was probably largely removed when the castle was built, but large parts of the central building still contain Roman masonry, some of which (e.g. an outer wall of the Burgus) has been preserved up to the height of the second floor. The Burgus was probably integrated into a Carolingian fortification in the early Middle Ages. As is often the case with late antique buildings, the foundations were u. a. Middle Imperial tombstones ( Ala I Augusta Thracum ) used. The interior consisted of a roof structure of the atrium resting on twelve pillars and a well shaft.

Interior development

Several remains of the interior of the building could be cut off again and again in small-area investigations. In 1983, about 8 m north of the southern intermediate tower, remains of screed floors and burned wattle walls were found, which probably came from barracks from the wood-earth period. The pedestrian bridge in Kirchengasse also coincides exactly with the camp's via decumana .

After a house was demolished at Wiener Straße 6, an emergency excavation was carried out in the vicinity of the parish church. The first findings from Roman times were wooden buildings. After that, rectangular pier stumps of the supporting structure of a hall of a larger building were uncovered, which was rebuilt several times. In the top layer (fire layer) there were fragments of a bronze armored statue. As the bottom layer, discolouration of the earth from the post holes in a wooden building could be recognized, according to the find material it is likely to date from the period of the first wood and earth fort. Hannsjörg Ubl interprets the findings as components of the Principia of the wood-earth camp. The Principia of Stone Periods I and II with the flag sanctuary ( sacellum ) and administrative rooms on both sides was connected to the camp forum, which was surrounded on three sides by a pillar hall ( portikus ). It was probably burned down around AD 400. The remains of the aerarium (cellar room for the storage of the troop treasury) were converted into a burial chamber for the Marquis Cadaloc in the early Middle Ages. The rising Roman and early medieval masonry has been preserved in places up to three meters high. This was followed by continuous development up to today's St. Ruprecht Church. The Carolingian tomb and some preserved rooms of the Principia have been made accessible to those interested.

garrison

To date, no unequivocal statements can be made about the occupation of the Holz-Erde-Kastell, as no relevant inscriptions that could clarify this have appeared so far. The earliest camp was possibly set up by the Legio XIIII from Carnuntum for a partially mounted cohort ( Cohors equitata ).

Time position Troop name comment
1st to 2nd century AD Ala prima Hispanorum Auriana
(the first Hispanic squadron of Aurianus) 		Polaschek describes them as the first occupation force of the fort. Originally from Spain, she was probably recruited or commanded by a man named Aurius or Aurianus . According to an inscription from Aquincum , it was first moved from the Rhine to Pannonia under Tiberius . Her full name has only been known since Trajan times. Perhaps it is identical to the Ala I Hispanorum milliaria (i.e. 1000 men strong), which was assigned to the Danube under Claudius. The Ala Auriana is also mentioned by Tacitus as part of a smaller army group that marched to the Inn in the year of the Four Emperors in 69 AD to oppose Vitellius's contingent there.

A tombstone from Semriach in Styria suggests their presence in Noricum between the second half of the 1st century and the beginning of the 2nd century. A stationing in Raetia is known through a military diploma from Weißenburg (June 30, 107 AD) . It is possible that afterwards it was in the Burghöfe fort (Mertingen) for some time , as a dedicatory inscription suggests. Unity is no longer mentioned on Pannonian diplomas from AD 84 and 85. It is possible that she was assigned to the Noric Provincial Army (exercitus Norici) during this period .

2nd to 3rd century AD Ala prima Augusta Thracum
(the first Augustan Thracian cavalry squadron ) 		Their stationing in Augustianis is assured from 140 AD at the latest. It originally came from Syria, then came to Raetia and was relocated to the east again in the course of Trajan's Parthian wars . Where she stayed in the early 2nd century is largely in the dark. According to Herma Stiglitz, the unit was moved to the Noric Danube as early as 107 AD. It is based on a gravestone find made in 1925, the inscription of which names a member of this formation, Trouclaimarus, as well as the dedicatory inscription to Antoninus Pius (pro salute imperatoris) on the entrance portal of the city palace, which dates to the years 140–144 AD can be. For Hannsjörg Ubl, too, the unit was relocated to Noricum before 140 AD, as it is named “with the greatest probability” on a fragment of a military diploma from Mautern. Two veterans of the Ala I Thracum are also named on a tombstone in the castle courtyard of Traismauer today , the armorer C. Iulius Agricola and T. Aelius Quartio, the donor of the tombstone. In 1969 a further fragment of an inscription with a mention of the Ala I Thracum was discovered during canal excavations under the east gate . It is not known whether the troops were still in Traismauer in the 3rd century.
Ala I Thracum dedicatory inscription for Emperor Antoninus Pius above the entrance of the city palace
4th to 5th century AD Equites Dalmatae
(a division of Dalmatian riders) 		This unit is mentioned in the late antique Notitia Dignitatum on the list of Dux Pannoniae Primae et Norici Ripensis . This entry is also the last reference to a regular Roman occupation in Augustianis Castle .
4th to 5th century AD Foederati (mercenary) Most recently, Germanic federations were on guard duty here.

Vicus and burial grounds

The civil settlement of Augustianis began just east of the camp trenches and consisted partly of massive stone buildings, including a thermal bath . From here it reached almost a kilometer to the east and south and in its heyday had a small-town character. According to the small finds, the settlement developed at the same time as the military camp.

Vicus south

The southern camp village extended mainly along the road leading out of the east gate and in the corridors south of the fort. The findings of the civil settlement came to light mainly up to the railway line, in a topographically narrowly limited area (the foothills of the Venusberg reach up to approx. 200 m from the fort wall). The orientation of the residential buildings indicates a system built according to plan. Since the construction of the Western Railway in 1884/85, which runs past the city to the south, finds from Roman times have repeatedly been made here, especially when the gas pipe network was laid in the 1970s.

When laying the foundations for an extension to the main school building, half of a Roman pottery kiln was uncovered under the southern side wing in 1950. The combustion chamber (its dome was probably destroyed when the school was built in 1897) still contained pottery that could be dated to the 3rd century. In 1972 Alois Gattringer was able to cut into an early Roman settlement horizon in Bahnhofsstraße, which was covered with an embankment and sunk into a roll for masonry. Furthermore, a gravel road about eight meters wide was exposed at the height of the porta decumana . Traces of settlement activity (rammed earth floors and various remains of walls) could still be seen on both sides of the street to the east and west.

In 2002 it was also possible to distinguish between several construction phases of the southern vicus. The BDA (Neugebauer / Gattringer) carried out an excavation on an area of ​​890 m². The earliest finds ( post pits , foundation ditches, cellar pits) date from the second half of the 1st century AD. The stone buildings of the middle imperial period were oriented north-south. They were equipped with smooth screed floors, their walls stood on a ballast roll (= heaped up, not mortared ballast). Furthermore, two wells, each with wood and stone cladding, were examined. One of them was preserved in a park and made accessible.

In the vicinity of the southeast corner tower, 678 kg of animal bone material was recovered, which presumably consists largely of the waste from a slaughterhouse and allows conclusions to be drawn about the dietary habits of the garrison.

Vicus east

The eastern vicus extended approximately up to a length of 500 m in front of the fort. The examination of the remains of the wall showed that the buildings were oriented towards the main road leading out of today's "Wiener Tor", which could also be observed at several points. The first quarters were equipped with rammed earth floors, their side walls were built using the rod weaving technique with clay plaster, and gravel leveling could also be seen in several places.

The different phases of stone construction could be easily recognized in larger building complexes. At the same time, late antique conversions were also demonstrated and pottery kilns discovered. In the years after 1945, Roman-era building remains came to light in numerous new buildings, some of which had up to four construction phases. The first systematic excavations by the Austrian Archaeological Institute took place in the 1960s (Herma Stiglitz).

During the construction of the new post office in Wiener Straße No. 18, several wall sections, terrazzo floors and garbage pits were examined at the Römertor, which also belonged to the vicus of the fort.

Burial grounds

The grave fields from different times delimited the vicus in the south and east. They were mainly located southeast of the camp and on Venusberg. To the northeast of the city, in Stollhofen , a late antique burial ground was also examined. During various excavations up to 1995, a total of 382 burials were examined and their finds were recovered. However, it could not yet be captured in its entire extent.

The late antique burial ground on Venusberg has not yet been fully clarified as to its extent to the east. Such graves were also examined in the area of ​​the lower Venusberg and Schullerberg. 1948 were u. a. Roman graves also discovered at the Weinhauerinnung. A few years earlier, ancient graves had been destroyed a little further up. In 1958, during the laying work for a gas pipe u. a. the transition from the civil town to the burial ground discovered. In 1959, a gravestone and a conglomerate stone (dimensions: 160 × 70 × 50 cm) were found in an excavation pit between Werksbach and Werkstrasse, which had an additional opening of 40 × 22 × 20 cm in the middle and was closed with a stone (grave building? ).

The Society for Prehistory and Early History (Herwig Friesinger, S. Schmiedt) was able to recover a total of 39 body burials and an urn grave in 1964, dating from the 4th and 5th centuries. Century AD. According to the excavators, the cemetery continues here in a south-easterly and north-westerly direction.

In 1976 the farmer G. Gollner came across an antique stone box on the so-called community field. Stone boxes were found here as early as 1925 and individual stray finds were then picked up. In 1976 the area was excavated according to plan (BDA, Ch. Farka). Wall foundations (grave construction), pit objects, several body burials (partly again in stone boxes) and cremation graves could be recovered. The excavation resumed in 1980. 19 body graves and three cremation burials came to light. Investigations in 1995 also revealed that the burial ground apparently expanded further in all directions.

  • Roman stone monuments in the courtyard of the Traismauer City Palace
  • Traismauer Castle tombstone 4.JPG
  • Traismauer Castle tombstone 3.JPG
  • Traismauer Castle tombstone 2.JPG
  • Traismauer Castle tombstone 1.JPG
  • Traismauer Castle Roman stone column.JPG

Monument protection

The facilities are ground monuments within the meaning of the Monument Protection Act. Investigations and targeted collection of finds without the approval of the Federal Monuments Office are a criminal offense. Accidental finds of archaeological objects (ceramics, metal, bones, etc.) as well as all measures affecting the soil must be reported to the Federal Monuments Office (Department for Ground Monuments).

See also

literature

  • Kurt Genser: The Austrian Danube Limes in Roman times. A research report , In: The Roman Limes in Austria 33 (1986), pp. 304–322.
  • Herwig Friesinger, Fritz Krinzinger (Hrsg.): The Roman Limes in Austria. Guide to the archaeological monuments . Publishing house of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 2002, pp. 221–225.
  • Eva Steigberger: Traismauer - Augustiana. Fort - vicus. In: Verena Gassner, Andreas Pülz (Hrsg.): The Roman Limes in Austria. Guide to the archaeological monuments. Publishing house of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 2015, ISBN 978-3-7001-7787-6 , pp. 219–223.
  • Herwig Friesinger, Brigitte Vacha: The many fathers of Austria. Roman-Germanic-Slavs. A search for traces, Compress Verlag, Vienna 1987, ISBN 3-900607-03-6 .
  • Thomas Fischer: Noricum , Orbis Provinciarum, special volumes of the ancient world-Zabern's illustrated books of archeology, Zabern, Mainz am Rhein 2002, ISBN 3-8053-2829-X , p. 141.
  • Erich Polaschek, Hertha Ladenbauer-Orel: The Roman Fort Traismauer. In: Annual Issues of the Austrian Archaeological Institute 37, 1948, Beiblatt, Sp. 199 ff.
  • Johann Offenberger: Archaeological investigations in the parish church of Traismauer . In: Find reports from Austria 16 (1977) p. 215.
  • Johann Offenberger: The Roman camp Augustianis-Traismauer . In: Find reports from Austria 22 (1983), pp. 133–162.
  • Johann Offenberger: Traismauer - results of a probe on the eastern city wall . In: Find reports from Austria 32 (1993) pp. 535–542.
  • Manfred Kandler, Hermann Vetters (ed.): The Roman Limes in Austria. A leader . Publishing house of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna 1989, pp. 142–146.
  • René Ployer: The Norwegian Limes in Austria. Find reports from Austria, Materialhefte series B 3, Österr. Federal Monuments Office, Vienna 2013.

Remarks

  1. ↑ According to a farmer from Wagram an der Traisen, he had plowed stone foundations at this point decades ago. However, he was forbidden by the landlord to forward the report to the responsible authorities.
  2. ↑ The burial chamber contains the skeleton of a 30-year-old man killed by an arrow shot. The bullet had penetrated the front, penetrated the intestines, causing blood poisoning and tetanus, followed by cardiac arrest. The deceased was buried in a silver embroidered robe with a leather belt and a small strap tongue. In the east the chamber has a door or window opening. Alois Mosser interpreted the burial as that of Count Cadaloc, who died in the Avar War of Charlemagne at the Guntio fort (today's Güns ). The grave building is laid out as a " confessio ". The deceased was probably venerated as a saint in the early Middle Ages (J. Offenberger: 1983, p. 133, Herwig Friesinger, Brigitte Vacha: 1987, p. 110).
  1. ^ Johann Offenberger: 1983, p. 158.
  2. ↑ Notitia Dignitatum occ. XXXIV.
  3. ↑ G. Rasch: 1950, II, p. 22.
  4. ↑ Johann Offenberger, 1983, pp. 152-154.
  5. ^ HL Werneck: Fundamentals of early history between Dunkelsteinerwald and Unterlauf der Große Tulln , Herzogenburg 1955, p. 137.
  6. ↑ CIL 3, 5654 .
  7. ↑ CIL 3, 5655 .
  8. ↑ A. Plasser: 1894, p. 6.
  9. ↑ J. Offenberger, 1983, p. 154.
  10. ↑ E. Novotny: 1923, p. 20.
  11. ↑ Erich Polaschek: St. Pölten and the surrounding area in Roman times. In: Die Arbeitsgemeinschaft 9 (1933), pp. 1–11; here: p. 5 and Erich Polaschek: Noricum. In: Realencyclopadie der Classischen Altertumswwissenschaft, (1936), Sp. 1001.
  12. ^ Johann Offenberger: 1993, p. 542.
  13. ↑ Hannsjörg Ubl in: Severin between Roman times and Völkerwanderung , catalog, Linz 1982, p. 534.
  14. ↑ H. Ubl: 1980a, p. 598.
  15. ↑ K. Genser, 1986, p. 322.
  16. ↑ Groh / Sedlmayer, 2002, 35
  17. ↑ Offenberger, 1993, p. 542, H. J. Ubl, 1997a, p. 223
  18. ↑ Kandler-Vetters, 1989, p. 144.
  19. ↑ Offenberger 1983, p. 149.
  20. ↑ a b Johann Offenberger: 1983, p. 150.
  21. ↑ Kurt Genser: 1986, p. 315.
  22. ↑ J. Offenberger: 1983, p. 146.
  23. ^ Pro Austria Romana 26, 1976, p. 16, Johann Offenberger 1983, p. 137.
  24. ^ Pro Austria Romana , 26, 1976, p. 16. and Hannsjörg Ubl: 1990, p. 89.
  25. ^ Find reports from Austria , 22, p. 137.
  26. ↑ H. Ubl: 1997, p. 225
  27. ^ Johann Offenberger: 1983, p. 146 and Johannes-Wolfgang Neugebauer , in: Find reports from Austria 38, 1999, p. 486.
  28. ^ Find reports from Austria 37, 1998, p. 38 f. and Volume 38, 1999, p. 486.
  29. ↑ Johann Offenberger: 1983, pp. 138-143.
  30. ↑ J. Offenberger, 1983, p. 146.
  31. ↑ T. Fischer, 2002, p. 141, H. Ubl: 1997, p. 222
  32. ^ J. Offenberger, in: Find reports from Austria , 22, 1983, p. 137.
  33. ^ Find reports from Austria , 13, 1974, p. 119.
  34. ↑ Erich Polaschek: Noricum. In: Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswwissenschaft, (1936), Sp. 1003, E. Hadinger: 1940, p. 88, S. Seutter v. Loetzen, 1945, p. 175.
  35. ↑ CIL 3, 14349 .
  36. ↑ Histories 3, 5, 2.
  37. ↑ CIL 3, 11749 .
  38. ↑ CIL 16, 55 .
  39. ↑ CIL 16, 30 and CIL 16, 31 .
  40. ↑ Herma Stiglitz: 1973, p. 50 and 1975b, p. 89.
  41. ↑ H. Ubl: 1977/78, p. 242, note 16.
  42. ↑ CIL 16, 174 .
  43. ↑ H. Ubl: 1997, p. 222
  44. ↑ H. Ubl: 1997, p. 222
  45. ↑ Kandler-Vetters, 1989, p. 144.
  46. ^ Find reports from Austria , 41, 2002, p. 33 f.
  47. ↑ Alfredo Riedel: The animal bone finds of the Roman period camp service of Traismauer / Augustiana in Lower Austria. In: Annals of the Natural History Museum in Vienna. 95A, 1993, pp. 180 and 182 (entire article pp. 179–294, PDF on ZOBODAT ).
  48. ^ Find reports from Austria , 7, 1956–60, p. 112. and No. 10, 1971, p. 77.
  49. ^ Find reports from Austria 5, 1946–50, p. 113.
  50. ^ Find reports from Austria 10, 1971, p. 77.
  51. ^ Find reports from Austria , 7, 1956–60, p. 112.
  52. ^ Find reports from Austria , 5, 1946–50, p. 113, as well as No. 8, 1961–66, p. 102 and No. 9, 1966–70, p. 288.
  53. ↑ Find reports from Austria 1, 1930–34, p. 60.
  54. ^ Find reports from Austria , 15, 1976, p. 273 and No. 1, 1930–34, p. 60.
  55. ^ Find reports from Austria 19, 1980, p. 545.
  56. ^ Find reports from Austria 34, 1995, p. 30.
  57. ↑ Monument Protection Act ( Memento of the original dated November 15, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. on the side of the Federal Monuments Office @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.bda.at

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