Ruffenhofen Roman Park
The Römerpark Ruffenhofen is an archaeological park in the Hesselberg region in the south of the Ansbach district ( Bavaria ). On a total area of about 40 hectares, the Roman fort Ruffenhofen and large parts of the associated civilian settlement have been preserved underground and unsupervised.
The "Römerpark" is located in the area of the municipalities Gerolfingen , Weiltingen and Wittelshofen . These communities founded the "Zweckverband Römerkastell Ruffenhofen" in 2001 in order to open up the area for tourism, to market it and to secure it in the long term. In addition, the scientific investigation should be ensured. The ancient fortifications are located around 2.2 km from the Upper German-Rhaetian Limes . The fort is a ground monument according to the Bavarian Monument Protection Act .
concept
Since 2002, the Ansbach Office for Rural Development has been buying up previous agricultural land, under which the fort and parts of the camp village are located. Until 2003 under the field, most of the fortifications were declared as "Römerpark Ruffenhofen" to promote tourism in the surrounding communities and to safeguard their existence. On the open-air site, which has been laid out since 2003, the dimensions of the Roman fort can be experienced by planting hedges, mowing and paths. Information boards on the site provide further information, which is illustrated with illustrations. Buildings from the associated civilian settlement are also illustrated accordingly. On April 1, 2004, Matthias Pausch was employed by the Zweckverband as an archaeologist. Since 2006, the additionally founded association “Römerpark Ruffenhofen e. V. “, as a non-profit association the project ideally and financially. The entire area can be seen from a viewing hill.
development
The handover of the area to the Zweckverband and thus the establishment of the Roman Park took place on August 1, 2003. Since then, the area has been expanded as an archaeological park. On April 21, 2008, the groundbreaking ceremony for a major construction phase took place. This included the completion and planting of the observation hill with native bushes and immediately next to it a model of about 700 square meters on a scale of 1:10 with which the possible appearance of the fort is visually illustrated. The road network was also expanded. There are now numerous other facilities in the area, including a labyrinth, a playground, casts of Roman stone monuments and much more. As the association emphasizes, the outdoor area should be specially tailored to the interests of children.
museum
On October 13, 2012, a dedicated museum, the Limeseum , was opened. The Römerpark Ruffenhofen and the original exhibition from Weiltingen are also located there.
Fort and research history
Smaller excavations were carried out at the end of the 19th century by Wilhelm Kohl , route commissioner for the Reich Limes Commission . His published results formed the current state of research until the late 1970s. Since then, aerial archeology has been able to contribute new insights into the Limes fort, its structure and the surrounding camp village ( vicus ). With the help of geophysical prospections by the Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation , an overall plan of the facility was drawn up. In the summer of 2005, the Zweckverband carried out another excavation in the area of the fort wall.
literature
- Matthias Pausch : Possibilities and experiences of visualization in the Ruffenhofen castle. In: Peter Henrich (Ed.): Perspektiven der Limesforschung. Contributions to the Limes World Heritage, Vol. 5. Theiss, Stuttgart 2010, pp. 190–201.
- Matthias Pausch (Ed.): Römisches Ruffenhofen. Discoveries at the Limes World Heritage. Wißner, Augsburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-89639-699-0 .
- Matthias Pausch: Limeskastell and Vicus Ruffenhofen (Middle Franconia). A world heritage is flourishing anew as the Roman Park. In: Rieser Kulturtage. Documentation. 17, 2008. Nördlingen 2009, pp. 23-48.
- Matthias Pausch: Visualizations and plantings on the Limes. First experiences and considerations from Ruffenhofen. In: Monument preservation information . Edition B, No. 1 39.Bavarian State Office for Monument Preservation, Munich 2008, p. 42 ff.
Web links
Coordinates: 49 ° 2 ′ 47.2 ″ N , 10 ° 28 ′ 50 ″ E