Salve on the Strassen Der Römer
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S A L V E O N THE STRASSEN SALVEDER RÖMER Here Europe is investing in the rural economy Welcome to the Strassen der Römer CONTENTS 03 Welcome to the Strassen der Römer 04 Signs of Roman life 10 Mosella 12 Wanderlust in all its variations 14 Celebrating with the Romans 16 Interview with the Roman "Gladiator Hercules" 19 Enjoy Roman delights 22 Wine in an ancient "kilner jar" 22 Cheers to Rufus, the wine merchant 25 Ancient motorways 28 Walking on thematic trails 34 Maps 40 All the attractions at a glance 45 Impressum 45 Tips tour by car P AGE 2 Foto: Yaph/TI Trier Yaph/TI Foto: NOWHERE ELSE NORTH OF THE ALPS IS THERE SUCH A CONCENTRATION OF RELICTS FROM THE ROMAN EMPIRE Welcome to the Strassen der Römer ere begins your journey into the ancient world, into the heart of Gaul, part of the Roman HEmpire. Mighty Roman emperors ruled in Trier, the first vines were cultivated in the Mosel valley, and major routes ran over the highlands of the Eifel, Hunsrück and Hochwald to the most important cities of the age. Some 100 remains from the period are still visible and are testimony to the dense population and great wealth, are evidence of the abundance of the fine Roman way of life. It is an archaeological park of extraordinary dimensions and rich variety. And today? It is a long time since a Roman emperor ruled in Trier. But the heart of Europe beats in Luxembourg. It was here on the Mosel that the Schengen Agreement was signed, opening up Europe’s internal frontiers and giving a whole new flair to the border region. The imposing old buildings of the imperial residence are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and attract innumerable tourists. The wines from the Mosel are among the finest in the world, and naturally taste particularly good when enjoyed where the vines grow. The flat river valleys of the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer are particularly suitable for enjoying cycle tours. One of the most beautiful long-distance footpaths in all of Germany, the Saar-Hunsrück Trail, takes you through the Saar-Hunsrück Nature Park. Volcanic activity has left its mark on the Eifel holiday region, and although the peaks and craters are long since inactive, they are now home to lakes, some of which invite you to bathe in them, and form an impressive backdrop for an active holiday. Today numerous premium and thematic footpaths provide access COLOGNE to the ancient cultural landscape of the Strassen der Römer, and let you relax in the various nature parks. A61 The towns in the region are modern, but also have a deep history. They are all A3 worth visiting and provide an excellent opportunity to enjoy a gentle shopping KOBLENZ trip. Many of the sites in the holiday region have been listed by UNESCO as being of particular significance, for example the Roman monuments in Trier and Igel, Eifel A48 Rhine the fortification and old town of the banking metropolis of Luxembourg, the Mosel A61 Völkinger Hütte with its unique ensemble of the old iron works, and the E42 Bliesgau Biosphere Reserve. Sauer Mosel- Saar In short: a holiday on the Strassen der Römer means relaxing tours of TRIER Hunsrück discovery in an area of special natural interest, taking in culture across A1 R borders, while enjoying the best wines and the numerous restaurants, uwer Luxemburger from the down-to-earth to award-winning cuisine. Mosel REMERSCHEN A1 Let yourself be surprised … Saar Saarland Mosel SCHWARZENACKER BLIESBRUCK- REINHEIM France More information is to be found on the internet at www.strassen-der-roemer.eu METZ P AGE 3 SI G N S Along THE Mosel, SAAR AND RHINE, THE Roman EMPIRE HAS left more NUMEROUS AND varieD traces THAN ANYWHERE else IN O F Northwest EUROPE. ROM A N LIFE Precious objects that belonged to the owner of the villa at Perl-Borg; right: the Porta Nigra P AGE 4 P AGE 5 Top: The temple in Tawern, mosaic in Otrang Roman villa (Fliessem) Centre: Constaninian painted ceiling in the Museum am Dom (Trier); Dalheim Roman theatre (Luxembourg); underground heating and service passages in the Imperial baths (Kaiserthermen) (Trier) Bottom: Fragment of wall painting from Kenn Roman villa Right: Roman aqueduct (Mechernich-Vussem); Constantine’s basilica (Trier) P AGE 6 nderfloor heating, winemaking, aqueducts and road Unetworks – the Romans brought many things with them when they arrived and settled on the Mosel, Saar and Rhine over 2,000 years ago. On its victorious campaigns Rome did more than just extend her empire and move its frontiers. Its rulers were like missionaries in the way that they brought the blessings of Roman culture to the regions they conquered. Furthermore, Romans who moved to the new provinces did not want to give up the moderns comforts and their customary way of life, and so made sure that their new home was “typically Roman” – thus leaving behind numerous traces from all aspects of their life: transport infrastructure, residential areas, large agricultural installations and palaces with running water, underfloor and wall heating, as well as impressive artistic decoration, streets and roadside settlements, mines and quarries, temples and burials, baths and aqueducts. In addition, the showcases of museums house jewellery, vases, bowls, works of art and all sorts of everyday articles. All of these sights provide very different insights into the life of the Romans. Soon after their arrival in the Celtic lands, the Romans already started to extend the existing road network and built metalled roads to facilitate troop movements and as trading routes. Some of them still survive today and bear witness to the logistics and engineering ability of the Romans. As if drawn with a ruler, some of them run straight as a die through woods and across plains, or cross rivers and valleys on bridges. A number of them are still used by traffic today – for example the Roman bridge in Trier, which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Romans procured their building materials nearby, and numerous quarries and mines are testimony to the industry and the technical abilities of the time: the site at Meurin is a particularly good example, and the Emilianus mine is well preserved. Of course, the stone was not only used to build bridges and streets, but was also used for buildings such as the famous Porta Nigra in Trier. Along the roads, at a distance of more or less one day’s journey, and at important crossroads, vici were established, roadside settlements and ancient services. At the site of the excavations in the vicus of Tabernae, modern Tawern, you can see what sort of facilities and buildings were important then. There were smithies, storage facilities for provisions, and wells. Part of the settlement at Swarzenacker has been reconstruc- ted and provides a vivid impression of the old trading and staging post. Even in those days, people who stopped over briefly in such vici wanted to be entertained. As well as taverns, there were sometimes theatres such as the one in the vicus at Dalheim in Luxembourg. Some of the houses in the vici were quite comfortably furnished and equipped with underfloor and wall heating, as well as elaborate baths. P AGE 7 imilarly luxurious installations are also to be found in the baths not only served as places for people to wash and groom remains of the rural farmsteads, some of which were almost palace-like themselves, they were also social meeting points. Thanks to the many Sin their dimensions. As a rule it was the Roman families who lived in ruins, for example the Kaiser- and Barbarathermen in Trier, we can the stylish central buildings, which were decorated with mosaics, reconstruct the elaborate bathing ritual: first you went into the while their slaves and employees lived in the more simple quarters. lukewarm tepidarium, then into the hot calidarium, before finally The stalls and storage buildings were near the fields and pastures. cooling off in the frigidarium. Wellness was already of great Many of the villas had underground cellars where provisions such as importance to the Romans. The many sanctuaries and remains of grain, fruit, vegetables and meat were stored, as well as the wine that temples in the region reflect the important role that religion played the Romans made on the Mosel. The reconstruction of the villa at for the Romans and Celts at the time. Before Christianity established Borg provides a detailed impression of what life was like then in the itself, and the emperor Constantine donated Trier Cathedral, a countryside. Here you can enjoy a Roman kitchen, baths and gardens, multi-cultural religious community lived here, worshipping and and even eat in a Roman tavern, while the villas at Otrang and Nennig tolerating numerous gods side by side. There were also many different have splendid mosaics. Some of the rural establishments had their own forms of burial and types of tombs: there were burial mounds, wineries, for wine was one of the Romans’ favourite drinks, as funerary temples, extravagant tombstones, ash cists and stone numerous finds in the region confirm. Villas with their own baths also sarcophagi. But overall they all had one thing in common: they were always had their own water supplies, which were part of an enormous highly visible, situated along roads and at exposed sites. Grave goods network that reveals the full extent of the Romans’ skills. The water such as pottery, jewellery, weapons and tools provide a glimpse of flowed not just underground, but also across the countryside and over what during their lifetime was important to those buried here.