Roman villa Miecher

The villa rustica of Goeblingen- "Miecher" is a Gallo-Roman agricultural estate of significant size in the area once occupied by the Treveri.

Built in the early 1st century, the estate comprised at least seven stone buildings and a wall enclosing an area of 5 hectares. Still visible today are the remains of the luxurious villa, two residential buildings, a little temple and three buildings used for agricultural purposes.

Interesting to note is that the owner of the estate broke with prevailing Celtic traditions very shortly after the ending of the Treverian revolts and built a mausoleum according to the Roman model around 30 AD.

During the Germanic invasions of the late 3rd century, the main residential building was converted into a burgus to allow the inhabitants to protect themselves from attacking barbarian hordes. A defensive bulwark of three moats, three earthen ramparts, a wooden palisade and a massive watchtower protected this fortified refuge. At the beginning of the 4th Century AD, during the reign of Constantine the Great, the burgus was dismantled and the villa experienced a short renaissance. In the turmoil brought on by the large-scale migrations of the Völkerwanderung, the estate was abandoned and forgotten until its rediscovery by Pastor Georges Kayser in 1964.

Starting at the car park located on Route CR 189 between Goeblingen and Simmerschmelz, visitors are guided by a series of illustrated panels giving an overview of the archaeological findings from the Stone and Bronze Age, the Celtic and Gallo-Roman era. The foundations of six stone buildings and the partial reconstruction of the mausoleum and the defensive bulwark of the burgus can be visited free of charge all year round. A large number of illustrated panels detail the purpose of each building and highlight different aspects of Gallo-Roman culture. Visitors wanting to visit the five burial mounds of the Celtic landowners follow the forest path for about 500 meters and reach a path marked with an amphora symbol. These panels lead to the burial ground of Goeblingen-Nospelt counting some 13 Celtic graves.

Guided tours for both sites can be organized on request by the "d'Georges Kayser Altertumsfuerscher".
Please contact gka@gka.lu.