Roman excavations in Saarland
The Roman Empire also left its mark on the Saarland . This historical epoch was documented , for example, in the exhibition The Romans on the Moselle and Saar .
Roman roads
Four Roman roads of supraregional importance crossed the Saarland:
- The road from Metz to Trier followed the Moselle and ran over the Saargau near Borg.
- The road from Metz to Mainz crossed the Saar at leasing and led via Tholey .
- The road from Metz to Worms went via Saarbrücken and Schwarzenacker .
- The road from Saarburg (Lorraine) to Trier ran across these three roads and ran largely along the Saar.
There were also numerous "cross-connections", for example from Schwarzenacker to Tholey and on to Trier.
Roman settlements
Settlements emerged particularly at road crossings and river crossings. Some such "Vici" (singular "Vicus") in Saarland were of particular importance:
- Schwarzenacker with the Roman Museum Schwarzenacker
- Contiomagus with a late Roman fort from the end of the 3rd century
- Tholey
- the Vicus Saravus in Saarbrücken and the nearby late Roman fort Saarbrücken
- Bliesbruck-Reinheim
At the time of the Great Migration , many of these settlements were converted into fortified forts.
Roman villas
In addition to the "vici", significant individual settlements emerged in the form of country estates or "villas" (singular "villa"). The following villas deserve special mention: They have been well researched through archaeological excavations and some have been reconstructed.
- The Roman Villa Borg in Borg
- The Roman villa in Mechern
- The Roman villa in Nennig
- The Roman villa in Reinheim
- The ruin " Sudelfels " near him
The mosaic in Nennig
Nennig is a district of Perl and is best known for its Roman villa. The building, which dates from the 2nd century AD, was discovered during earthworks in 1852 . The remains of a large villa were excavated. A 10 × 16 meter mosaic floor is almost intact. They are the best preserved Roman mosaics north of the Alps. Fights between people and animals with background music - as they actually took place in the arenas - are shown connected in ornaments. The splendid residential building, with its 120-meter-wide facade facing the Moselle, a separate bathroom with an area of almost 500 square meters, and a 256-meter-long, covered walkway between the residential and bathing buildings seemed to allow an interpretation as a luxury villa.
The fact that the manorial estate (“villa”) not only included the manorial residence (“pars domestica”) but also a manor with economic buildings (“pars rustica”) only became apparent when a new building area was opened up towards the Moselle in 1997. The locations of three buildings on both sides of a huge courtyard area could be determined. One was completely excavated by 2001 with the help of the Pre- and Protohistory Department of Saarland University. 49 ° 31 '44.4 " N , 6 ° 23' 4.9" E
European culture park Bliesbruck-Reinheim
The Franco-German excavation site in Reinheim and Bliesbruck is of particular importance . Here an important Celtic tomb, a Roman villa and a Gallo-Roman settlement, all of which are only a few hundred meters apart, are combined to form the European cultural park .
Copper tunnel of Emilianus
The Emilianus tunnel in St. Barbara (Wallerfangen) has been preserved intact. It has been open to the public since 1967. The Saarland Mining Museum in Bexbach also provides information about the history of the tunnel .
Gravesites
The grave mound of Oberlöstern are two monumental tombs dating from Roman times near the Waderner hamlet Oberlöstern. The two burial mounds, which presumably date from the 2nd century AD, were apparently laid out on an existing Roman cemetery with urn graves and ash pits, to which a settlement about 400 meters further northeast belonged. This was in today's corridor "honey sack".
Places of worship - sanctuaries
In addition to the "Vici" and "Villas", there are also several places of worship and sanctuaries in the Saarland that were consecrated to the Mithras cult or the gods Merkur and Rosmerta.
- The Mithras sanctuary on the Saarbrücker Halberg
- The Mithras relief in Freisen-Schwarzerden
- The double complex of the Gallo-Roman temple district of Bierbach
- The source shrine " Sudelfels " with him
- The "Kasbruch Sanctuary" near Neunkirchen, consecrated to Mars
literature
- Johann Nikolaus von Wilmowsky : The Roman villa at Nennig. Your inscriptions . Lintz, Trier 1868, also as a pdf online publication
See also
Web links
- Roman Museum Homburg-Schwarzenacker
- Roman open-air museum in Homburg-Schwarzenacker
- Exhibits from the Roman Museum Homburg-Schwarzenacker on www.digicult-saarland.de
- Archaeological Park Roman Villa Borg
- Exhibits from the Roman Villa Borg archaeological park at www.digicult-saarland.de
- European culture park Bliesbruck-Reinheim