They are located in the municipality of Eschenz (Vor der Brugg district), Frauenfeld district, Thurgau canton and in Stein am Rhein (St. George's Monastery), Schaffhausen canton, Switzerland.
A civil settlement of the same name had existed since the 1st century, stretching along a Roman road 500 meters east of the Eschenz fort. Archaeological finds and a fragmentary building inscription show that a fort was built by the Romans in early late antiquity on the left bank of the Rhine, and their garrison secured an important river crossing there. There was also a small, fortified bridgehead fort on the right bank of the Rhine. A late Roman cemetery was also discovered during excavations. A certain settlement continuity can be proven up to the Middle Ages; several medieval buildings were erected on the foundations of Roman buildings. Today the Johanneskirche stands in the center of the fort area. Due to the rich finds around the fort, and later also on the right bank of the Rhine in the monastery of St. George, Eschenz and Stein am Rhein are among the archaeologically most important ancient find sites in Switzerland.
Tasgetius/Tazgetios was originally a male name which, according to Julius Caesar, was used by the Gallic tribe of the Carnutes, among others. According to some researchers, the ancient place name Tasg(a)etium was adopted by the Romans from the Celtic predecessor settlement, which may have been founded by a man named Tasgo or referred to the local possessions of Tasgetios. The Romans only replaced the Celtic suffix with the Latin suffix -ium. The Roman name of the place later fell into oblivion. The term "castle" for the fort hill has been documented since the time of Emperor Otto I.
The late antique fort is located on the left bank of the Rhine on an elevation (Auf Burg) on ??the southern bank of the outflow of the Untersee (Lake Constance or Orkopf). The vicus was located in the vicinity of a small creek delta at the level of a group of river islands. In Roman times, wooden bridges crossed the Rhine here, with the eastern tip of the archipelago being used as a pier. The water crossing channeled overland traffic from the southern Lake Constance area northwards into the Hegau in the direction of the Limes and vice versa. In ancient times, this was the border of the Roman province of Maxima Sequanorum, which emerged from the Germania superior (Upper Germania) around 297 AD. The exact course of the border to Raetia I is unknown. Tasgetium was probably still on Rhaetian territory, to the south ran the border between Lake Zurich and Lake Walen. The Basel – St. Margrethen line formed the imperial border twice in Roman times: in the 1st century AD until the conquest of the Dekumatland and from around 260 until the beginning of the 5th century.
The Roman road, called the "Rhaetian border road" in literature, led from Tasgetium via Rielasingen, Singen, Friedingen, Steißlingen, Orsingen, Vilsingen, Inzigkofen to Laiz at a ford through the Danubius (Danube). In Orsingen there was a branch to Pfullendorf and Burgweiler. In the area of ??the Dürren Ast there is a turn-off via Schweingruben and the Ablachtal to Messkirch, Krauchenwies and Menge-Ennetach. A well-developed road between Vitudurum (Oberwinterthur) and Tasgetium can also be assumed.
research history
The castle in Eschenz has been known for a long time. The finds of inscriptions and the remains of bridges in the bottom of the lake aroused the interest of scholars from the 16th century. In 1548 the "... old fort at Burg bei Stein..." was mentioned in the Stumpf chronicle. The first archaeological research began in 1741, when a dedicatory inscription for the river god Rhenus was discovered during the construction of the cemetery wall inside the fort. In the 16th century, the fragmentary building inscription of the fort was found in St. John's Church, which dates it and which was interpreted by Theodor Mommsen in 1850. The remains of the Roman bridge near Eschenz were entered on plans in the 18th century, and the numerous coin finds from the bed of the Rhine near the bridges were always worth mentioning. In the area of ??the civilian settlement, excavations by employees of the Rosgarten Museum only began in the late 19th century. In 1874/1875, Bernhard Schenk's excavations in the thermal baths of the civilian settlement on the Dienerwiese attracted a great deal of attention. The building inscription discovered in the building complex shows that the better-off vicani renovated the complex with their own funds. Even more significant was the discovery of a stone inscription with the letters "TASG," which revealed to researchers the ancient place name Tasgetium, which was not Gaunodurum, as erroneously believed.
From the middle of the 20th century, the walls of the fort, some of which are still visible, and their interiors were archaeologically examined. It was mostly urban changes that the archaeologists used for emergency excavations on site. As a result, most of the forts in the Eschenz area could soon be located, such as Brigantium (Bregenz) and Arbor Felix (Arbon). In Constantia (Constance) this was only possible in 2003. In Tasgetium (Stein am Rhein) and Ad Fines (Pfyn), on the other hand, remains of the wall still visible above ground indicated where the former forts had stood.
Between 1931 and 1935, the first canton archaeologist in Thurgau, Karl Keller-Tarnuzzer (1891-1973), supported by Archbishop Raymund Netzhammer (1862-1945), carried out extensive excavations on the island of Werd, where numerous remains of pile dwelling settlements from the Neolithic and Bronze Age were discovered. During these investigations, however, Roman finds also came to light. The art historian Hildegard Urner-Astholz (1905-2001), who lived in the vicarage of the Johanneskirche in Burg, accompanied some emergency excavations and published a summary of the results in 1942, which remained the only description of the Roman vicus for a long time. Equally important were the field observations of Alfons Diener (1923-2006), who from 1960 onwards supervised all construction projects such as utility trenches, building pits and other ground interventions and was able to salvage countless objects and thus save them from destruction or disappearance. Willful damage, such as the tearing out of Roman bridge piles at the beginning of the 1970s, affected the sites. Only after Jost Bürgi was employed as cantonal archaeologist in 1973 was it possible to better document the finds and findings that came to light during the construction projects and gradually develop effective preventive measures for the preservation of the ancient remains. Between 1971 and 1987 the Cantonal Archeology of Schaffhausen undertook extensive excavations in the former late Roman fort at Burg. In 1983 the association for village history was founded, which set up a museum in the converted property "Blauer Aff" in 1991.
Thanks to the heavily aquiferous soil layers, the archaeological excavations in Unter-Eschenz over the last 100 years have brought to light very well-preserved wooden building structures as well as organic finds (leather, wood, seeds and fruits) preserved under the atmospheric oxygen seal. Components made of wood not only provided information about the carpentry technique of the time, but also about the selection of wood types and forest management. Thanks to dendrochronology, the buildings can often even be dated to the year. After 2000, excavation work focused on the Eschenz region (Unter-Eschenz). During the excavation campaigns between 2005 and 2006, the area near the Vitus Church, demolished in 1738, was examined. Layers from Roman times lay beneath the graves, mostly in very damp soil. For this reason, organic materials such as e.g. B. Timber from the houses and parts of paths or water channels from the first two centuries AD are very well preserved. The exact dating was possible through the annual ring analysis. Other materials, such as animal bones and plant waste, allow conclusions to be drawn about the eating habits of the inhabitants. In addition to countless potsherds, objects of everyday use made of leather and even textiles could be salvaged. This wet soil preservation makes Eschenz one of the most important sources north of the Alps for Roman everyday objects made of perishable materials. In 2009, divers carried out investigations in the Orkopf near Badi Eschenz. In order to be able to measure the floor plan of the Vicustherme again precisely, but also to supplement the known building structures of Tasgetium, the Thurgau Office for Archeology carried out a geophysical prospection on the Dienerwiese in autumn 2010.
Pre-Roman period
Neolithic buildings testify to a very early settlement of the island of Werd and the nearby lake shore. From that time on, the area was continuously settled. Accordingly, numerous remarkable finds were made, some of supra-regional importance. Among them are the famous Eschenz gold cup (made in 2000 BC) and a Gallo-Roman wooden figure (AD 60-70).
Turn of the century to 2nd century
Shortly before the turn of the century, the Romans advanced with their troops to the Untersee. In the course of Augustus' campaign in the Alps around the year 15 BC. The area around the Lacus Brigantius (Lake Constance), which was ruled by the Celts, was also subdued and later integrated into the newly established province of Raetia (Raetia). The natural condition of a shallow water zone and the favorable location of the Werd Islands, a small group of islands at the outflow of the Rhine from the Untersee, prompted the Romans to build an important north-south connection across the Rhine there. This was opened up via the great military road between Ad Fines (Pfyn) and Vitudurum (Oberwinterthur) and was also used for trade. As the numerous finds from the early Imperial period suggest, a fort may have stood in Stein am Rhein since Augustan times. A first wooden pole yoke bridge was probably built there between 50 and 82 AD (depending on the dating of the annual rings, the information varies). This established a north-south connection that could be used all year round, which gave trade a major boost. A vicus was built at the southern bridgehead, which was probably a completely new Roman foundation. Already a few years before the beginning of the 1st century AD - the oldest timbers found so far were between 3 and 2 BC. felled - large drainage ditches were dug there to drain the subsoil and a first gravel road was laid along the river bank. It took about a generation for the plots laid out at right angles to the road to be built over, but after that the area around the bridge was probably largely occupied. As a bridge and port town, Tasgetium was probably the most important Roman civilian settlement in today's Thurgau, as it had the only bridge within a radius of about 30 kilometers and therefore soon developed into a flourishing street settlement with numerous handicraft businesses and its own market.
3rd to 4th centuries
When the border troops could no longer guarantee security due to internal conflicts from the 3rd century, the civilians were forced to fortify their settlements due to repeated raids by plundering Germanic tribes. But also far inland, such as in Pfyn, Oberwinterthur or Kloten, the provincial residents had to defend their settlements with walls. The waterline of the Rhine, Lake Constance, Danube and Iller has always formed a natural border. From the late 3rd century onwards, following the abandonment of the Upper German-Rhaetian Limes, this was additionally secured with newly erected watchtowers and forts (Danube-Iller-Rhein-Limes). The construction of the late antique fort near Stein am Rhein should also be seen in this context. The period of rapid changes of rulers and constantly flaring civil wars (the so-called imperial crisis of the 3rd century) came to an end under Emperor Diocletian. He then made intensive efforts to secure and strengthen the borders. From 293 he led the Roman Empire in dual rule with Maximian (Augusti), supported by two sub-emperors (Caesares). From the middle of the 3rd century, settlement activity in the Vicus declined sharply or probably even stopped altogether. This marked drop in activity is very likely due to the Alamanni incursions into the entire Lake Constance region. Because of the threat of constant Alemanni raids, a military camp was built between 293 and 305 AD on the castle hill on the left bank of the Rhine in what is now the district of "Vor der Brugg". This is testified to by the largely preserved building inscription. The fortress was part of the border line along the Upper Rhine, which served to control travel and to ward off Germanic looters in the 4th century AD. Caesar Constantius Chlorus, who was then responsible for Gaul and the Rhine border, was probably responsible for the construction of the fort. After its completion, the focus of civilian settlement shifted a little further to the west. The middle imperial settlement was abandoned and a new vicus was built under the protection of the fortress. At the latest since the start of construction, the old vicus was already largely deserted, its buildings only ruins that could not be used. This can assume rubble horizons from collapsed tiled roofs. Lime kilns excavated between the town and the fort in 2016 further prove that stones from the Vicus were primarily used for the fort wall or burned to lime or processed into mortar. Evidence (including coin finds) of later use of the ruins by scrap metal collectors in the 4th century is also noteworthy. In one of the ruins, 9 kg of scrap lead was found in the top find layers, which was to be melted down in a pit-shaped fireplace. A new stone bridge was also built over the Rhine a little below the fort hill. It was additionally secured on the north bank by a bridgehead fortification and connected Tasgetium with the forts in Constantia (Constance), Arbor Felix (Arbon) and Brigantium (Bregenz).
5th to 7th centuries
Shortly after 400, the fortress was renewed and strengthened again, but the fort may have been vacated by its garrison when the Rhine border collapsed for a while in 406/407. However, use up to the middle of the 5th century would also be conceivable; the demolition of the series of coins around 400 could also be explained by the fact that the limitanei in the 5th century were often remunerated in kind instead of money. It is not known exactly when the Roman border defenses on the Rhaetian part of the DIRL were dissolved. By the end of the 5th century at the latest, the last regular soldiers, who probably no longer received any pay from the Western Roman government in Ravenna, should have left and left the fort to the now largely defenseless civilian population.
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