15
Vienna during Roman Times Visitors to the Roman Museum find themselves in Vienna’s inner city, where the legionary fortress of Vindobona once stood nearly 2,000 years ago. On the lower ground floor of the museum, the remains of two officers’ houses can be seen, the most important excavation in Vienna. On the ground and first floor, the military town, the large urban settlement in front of the fortress and the civil town are presented. What did Roman Vienna look like? How did people live then? The Romans were in the area of Vienna for about 350 years. In 97 A.D., one of the 30 legionary fortresses of the Imperium Romanum developed here. The empire stretched from Britannia to Syria. Vindobona served as a means to secure the northern frontier. Beyond the Danube lay the Germanic region. Vindobona experienced an economic and cultural period of prosperity from the 2nd to the middle of the 3rd century A.D. The exhibition concentrates on this crucial era, when more than 30,000 people lived here. Around the legionary fortress, civilian settlements flourished with a colourful mix of inhabitants: Romans, Romanised Celts, and immigrants from all corners of the empire. Since the late 19th century, remains of Vienna’s Roman past have been unearthed in the course of construction works. Through scientific analysis of walls, layers of earth, and daily necessities, not only information about buildings can be obtained, but also about the daily life of people who once lived here. Nearly all the exhibits presented come from the Wien Museum’s own collection.