Römisch-Germanisches Museum of Cologne
Roncalliplatz 4, 50667 Köln
Opening times: Daily except Monday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
First Thursday in the month 10 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Tel. 0221 221 24438 or 24590
E-mail: [email protected]
Activities accompanying the exhibition:
August 20, 2015, 6.30 p.m. in the Römisch-Germanisches Museum,
Cologne, Illustrated lecture by Prof. Dr. Klaus Grewe, Bonn:
Water for Roman Cities − new information on the planning and
routing of Roman aqueducts. In German language, admission free.
Bus excursion to the Roman aqueduct in the Eifel
with a short walk along the Roman Aqueduct hiking trail between
Grünen Pütz near Nettersheim and Kall-Urft. Lunch (self paying)
July 18, 2015, 9 a.m. Meeting point in Hürth-Hermülheim,
Kiebitzweg (tram stop - line 18, parking area). Return about 6 p.m.
Fee to cover costs 25 Euros. Information and registration under
www.kreaforum.de
Not suitable for wheelchairs.
Bus excursion to the Roman Dover-Berg Tunnel near Düren
and the medieval Tiergarten Tunnel at Blankenheim.
Picnic lunch (bring own)
August 8, 2015, 9 a.m. Meeting point in Hürth-Hermülheim,
Kiebitzweg (tram stop - line 18, parking area). Return about 6 p.m.
Fee to cover costs 25 Euros. Information and registration under
www.kreaforum.de Not suitable for wheelchairs.
Cologne City walking tour
Visit six Romanesque churches, in particular to see objects carved
out of ’aqueduct marble‘. Lunch (self paying)
September 19, 2015, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Meeting point in front of St Severin‘s Church
Fee to cover costs 32 Euros. Information and registration under
www.kreaforum.de Not suitable for wheelchairs.
Underground stone channel,
through which 20 million litres of drinking water ﬂowed
into Roman Cologne each day.
In the exposed section of the
channel near MechernichBreitenbenden, the imprint of
the centring planks are still
visible. Photograph K. Grewe
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Partially reconstructed bridges of the Eifel aqueduct near
Mechernich-Vussem.
Photograph K. Grewe
Roman aqueducts on the Appian Way near Rome
Illustration: T. Wehrmann for
Geo Epoche after a painting by
Zeno Diemer (1914) in the Deutsches Museum in Munich
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A Museum of
WATER
FOR ROMAN CITIES
JUNE 26 TO OCTOBER 11, 2015
The availability of hygienic, perfectly clean water for
drinking and other purposes was absolutely essential
in Roman times. Large cities could only develop at
locations with a secure supply of spring water. The
construction and maintenance of aqueducts, which
often carried fresh water over great distances, were
therefore among the most important responsibilities
of Roman magistrates and emperors.
Gravity conduits are known, as are high-pressure
pipes that were constructed on the principle of
communicating vessels, and − an exceptional technical accomplishment − the large aqueduct bridges.
The extraordinary achievements of Roman engineers
in the construction of aqueducts are on display in
this exhibition. A precise survey of the terrain, detailed planning, and skilled construction with the
simplest of technical equipment, such as the ‚Chorobat‘ (similar to a modern spirit level) and the ‚Groma‘
(a surveying instrument), produced brilliantly built
tunnels and aqueduct bridges with sometimes colossal arches. They are evidence of both Rome‘s selfconﬁdence and her claim to power.
voirs and sedimentation basins along the Eifel
aqueduct have been made accessible to the public
as an archaeological hiking trail.
Since the water from the River Urft is extremely
hard, calcareous sinter was deposited on the bottom and sides of the conduits − in some sections as
much as 40 cm thick. Medieval stonemasons methodically quarried these calcareous deposits and
used the ‚aqueduct marble‘ to decorate churches,
monasteries and castles. The material was also
widely traded − columns, altar tables and tombstones made of this unusual material can be found in
the cathedrals along the Hellweg (a medieval travellers‘ route) as well as in the cathedrals at Roskilde in Denmark, in Canterbury and in some
Dutch churches.
The exhibition gives an insight into the technology
of aqueduct construction in the Roman Empire.
The Eifel aqueduct is taken as an example to explain numerous technical details. Particular attention is paid to the reuse of the construction in the
Middle Ages.
The Eifel aqueduct, which brought fresh water from
springs in the limestone region of the Eifel Mountains to Roman Cologne, was one of the longest Roman aqueducts. Here, for the ﬁrst time, is archaeological proof of how such a construction project was
broken down into individual sections. A massive stilling basin formed the junction between two sections
of the conduit. Water-capture points, bridges, reserThe Roman Eifel aqueduct
near Euskirchen-Kreuzweingarten. The calcareous deposits here are up to 30 cm
thick. Photograph K. Grewe
Measurement of heights with the
aid of a ‚Chorobates‘. This early
form of spirit level was made of a
wooden beam 20 ft (approx. 6 m)
long on vertical supporting legs.
It was adjusted horizontally by
means of plumb lines and a groove containing water. Illustration
F. Spangenberg (Illu-Atelier)
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Top right
Pont du Gard, a multi-story Roman aqueduct bridge in
southern France. The water
was carried in a closed channel on top of the rows of arches. Photograph K. Grewe
Relief on the Ammianos sarcophagus from Hierapolis in
Phrygia (Pamukkale, Turkey)
with depiction of a water-driven dual saw to cut stone.
Photograph K. Grewe
Publication accompanying
the exhibition: K. Grewe,
Aquädukte. Wasser für Roms
Städte (Rheinbach 2014),
available in the museum shop
and in bookshops (ISBN 9783-95540-127-6); € 29.95
Functional layout of the Castellum divisorium at Nimes
(France). Illustration T. Wehrmann for Geo Epoche
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------------------------------------------------Accompanying publication
------------------------------------------------Title page