Niedernberg Castle

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Niedernberg Castle
limes ORL 34 ( RLK )
Route (RLK) Upper German Limes ,
route 6 (Main line)
Type Cohort fort
unit Cohors I Ligurum et Hispanorum cR eq
size 2.2 ha
State of preservation Ground monument not visible
place Niedernberg
Geographical location 49 ° 54 '50.8 "  N , 9 ° 8' 27.8"  E Coordinates: 49 ° 54 '50.8 "  N , 9 ° 8' 27.8"  E
height 115  m above sea level NHN
Previous Stockstadt Fort (north-north-west)
Subsequently Fort Obernburg (south)

The Niedernberg fort was a Roman fort in Niedernberg in the Miltenberg district in Lower Franconia . Like almost all forts on the Main , the so-called " Wet Limes ", the Niedernberg fort is now completely overbuilt. It is located under today's center of Niedernberg. The complex is one of the least archaeologically researched forts on the Upper Germanic-Raetian Limes .

Site plan of the Niedernberg fort
Replica of the bronze fountain mask
Marking of the north side gate in the pavement
Floor plan of the fort in the Limeswerk
Floor plan of the fort bath

location

Today the Limes fort is located under the southern part of the Niedernberg town center, which is located on a steep slope about seven meters above the level of the Main. The fort faced east, towards the river that ran from south to north. The Praetorial Front was about 70 m away from the Main. The fort can still be seen in places in the townscape. The Hauptstrasse, Kirchgasse and Schulstrasse run largely along the main warehouse streets.

history

With only very fragmentary archaeological findings, there are also few references to the Roman history of Niedernberg. The fort is believed to have been built around 107/110 AD and probably existed until the time of the Limes Falls around 260 AD.

As a unit stationed here, the Cohors I Ligurum et Hispanorum is documented by brick stamp finds and the gravestone of the soldier Marcellus . From another inscription of a field sign bearer (vexillarius) of the troop, it emerges that it must have been a partially mounted unit (cohors equitata) . This contrasts with the size of the camp, which is closer to the camps of a cohors peditata with regional parallels in Fort Großkrotzenburg or Fort Rückingen , while camps of a partially mounted cohort usually cover around three hectares.

exploration

Various clues already led to the assumption early in the 19th century that a Roman fort can be assumed in Niedernberg. In 1822 a gold coin of Domitian was found near the rectory . The mention of the place in the Lorsch Codex as Niderenburc , without any evidence of a medieval aristocratic residence in the place, suggested a parallel to the neighboring fort town of Obernburg . The overbuilding of the fort area as in Obernburg was also documented in Niedernberg by street names such as Römergässchen , Im Römer and Römereck .

Since 1883, excavations were carried out in Niedernberg by Wilhelm Conrady . In March 1884 he discovered the bathing building south of the church, which made the assumption secure. Conrady was not able to find the fort wall itself until 1894 during the excavations of the Reichs-Limeskommission , where he now acted as route commissioner for the Main line. The excavations turned out to be extremely difficult, as only the smallest sections of the various parts of the complex could be documented between the modern buildings. On the west side, the rear front of the fort was congruent with the later fortifications.

Since the grave field was not uncovered at the time, the amount of finds was also small compared to other fort locations on the Main Limes. In 1909 two altars were discovered in Fulda, which were brought there between 1728 and 1737. In the 20th century, a few new finds were made, with the burial field being proven during canal work and a soldier's grave stone recovered. Another highlight is a bronze Silens head , which served as a fountain mask. More recent archaeological investigations took place in 1998/1999, 2001/2002 and in March 2009 prior to the construction of the canal.

By aerial photography the trenches as a training camp could be detected by at least three forts in the Niederberger Gemarkung further Cohors I Ligurum et Hispanorum be interpreted.

Fort

The fort has a somewhat irregular, rectangular shape. The width of the main front is 135 m, on the decuman side (rear) 144.5 m. Due to the relatively weak evidence on the rear side, the length can only be given uncertainly at 152.50 m or 155.75 m.

The fort had a porta praetoria with two gateways , the main gate of the fort, while all the other three gates were simple. Conrady's view that the rear porta decumana is also equipped with two arches has been refuted by recent excavations. The arrangement of the gates would thus largely correspond to the neighboring Stockstadt fort . Corner towers have been reliably proven in the northwest and southeast. It is not certain whether the fort had intermediate towers. The course of the fence is marked in some places in the pavement today. The simple moat could only be examined in a few places. Its width is given as 9.50 m at a depth of 2.50 m below the bench . Other trenches of different widths, but not existing at the same time, were discovered during excavations in 2005.

During the excavations in 1998/99, the archaeologist Michael Hoppe was able to observe four pointed trenches during his investigation at the Porta principalis sinistra, which in his opinion belong in two different construction phases. A double ditch could have existed in front of this gate. The older, inner trench was in front of a 2 m wide berm, was 4 to 4.50 m wide and 2 m deep. A newer inner trench, a little further outwards, which cut the older one on its outer wall, testified to a second construction phase. The same pattern was evident in the older outer trench, which was built around 4.5 m from the older inner trench. This older outer trench was around 3.50 m wide and was also 2 m deep when it was excavated. Again, a newer trench cut the outside of the older one. Hoppe found that at the time of the trench renewal, the two older trenches had already been partially backfilled or were backfilled as planned. The archaeologist concluded from this that the moat reconstruction was connected with the stone construction of the fort. From the upper backfilling of the younger outer trench, he was able to recover Urmitz goods, which dated to the first half of the 3rd century. A denarius from the reign of Emperor Severus Alexander (222–235) also came from the same class . After the demolition of a building with no basement above the north-west corner of the fort, accompanied by archaeological assistance, the findings documented there shed some light on Conrady's uncertainties with regard to the Decuman side. Hoppe managed to secure part of the rounded corner of the fort and its course to the south. Remnants of a corner tower could not be found in the cut. Instead, it turned out that one of Conrady's wall findings, which Conrady had taken to be the back wall of the corner tower, belonged to the fort wall. Thus, the course of the southern Decuman side indicated by Conrady in his plan is now assumed to be obviously the correct one. Due to the new findings, the length of the fort will be closer to the 152.50 m given by Conrady and the width of the decuman front will probably not have been much wider than the main front.

Only the rear part of the staff building (principia) with the apse of the flag sanctuary is known of the interior development . To the south of it, a suite of rooms was excavated. The location of the building shows that the Niedernberg fort, like many forts, was oriented towards the Main and Limes. The fort village was in the shape of a horseshoe in the south, west and north around the fort. A stone cellar that was on the presumed road to Obernburg was uncovered in 2005. A sandstone relief with a male god figure was discovered in it, which was badly damaged.

Bath building

The fort bath was examined in 1884 and again in 1895. Like most of the fort baths on the "Nassen Limes", it was located in front of the southern main fort front near the Main. The bathroom is partly built over by a courtyard . It is a row-type bath that is very similar to the neighboring bath of the Stockstadt Castle. The length of the suite in which the main bathrooms were arranged is 42.40 m.

Monument protection

The Niedernberg fort and the facilities mentioned have been part of the UNESCO World Heritage as a section of the Upper German-Rhaetian Limes since 2005 . In addition, they are protected as registered ground monuments within the meaning of the Bavarian Monument Protection Act (BayDSchG). Investigations and targeted collection of finds are subject to authorization, accidental finds must be reported to the monument authorities.

See also

literature

Web links

Commons : Kastell Niedernberg  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Bernd Steidl : Limes World Heritage: Rome's border on the Main. Logo, Obernburg am Main 2008, p. 181.
  2. ↑ a b AE 1967, 338 .
  3. ↑ CIL 13, 11938 , erroneously stated there as Mainz-Kastel . The stone was found in Niedernberg and is now in the Cathedral Museum in Fulda. Marion Mattern: Roman stone monuments from Hesse south of the Main and from the Bavarian part of the Main Limes. Corpus Signorum Imperii Romani . Germany vol. 2,13, Mainz 2005, publisher of the Romisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseum; In commission at Habelt, Bonn, p. 100f. # 154.
  4. ↑ Codex Lauresham. n.141.
  5. ↑ For the early history of research see Conrady, ORL B p. 1f.
  6. ↑ Michael Hoppe: News on the fortification of the Roman castle Niedernberg . In: The archaeological year in Bavaria 2000. Theiss, 2001, pp. 75–77; here. P. 75.
  7. ↑ Main-Echo : Archaeologists find little in rescue excavation , from March 21, 2009
  8. ↑ Bernd Steidl: Limes World Heritage: Rome's border on the Main. Logo, Obernburg am Main 2008, p. 94f.
  9. ↑ Size information according to Conrady, ORL B p. 3.
  10. ↑ Marcus Jae: New excavations in the Roman Niedernberg. In: The archaeological year in Bavaria. 2005 p. 76.
  11. ↑ Marcus Jae: New excavations in the Roman Niedernberg. In: The archaeological year in Bavaria 2005. pp. 76–78.
  12. ↑ Michael Hoppe: News on the fortification of the Roman castle Niedernberg . In: The archaeological year in Bavaria 2000. Theiss, 2001, pp. 75–77.
  13. ↑ Marcus Jae: New excavations in the Roman Niedernberg. In: The archaeological year in Bavaria 2005. S. 78f.