Porta Nigra

Porta Nigra. Roman gateway to Trier (Augusta Treverorum). The Porta Nigra was built in grey sandstone between 186 and 200 AD as one of four city gates. The Greek monk Simeon lived as a hermit in the ruins of the Porta Nigra from 1028 to 1035. It became a church thereafter and for this reason it has survived in good condition. The apse to the the right was added in the 11th century. "Porta Nigra, a well-preserved town-gate with towers of defence, and the finest of the Roman structures at Troves. This magnificent relic, dating from the second half of the 3rd cent, of our era, is 118 ft. long, 75-95 ft. high, and 52-69 ft. in depth. It consists of three stories, with two gateways, 23 ft. in height, and is constructed of huge blocks of lias sandstone, blackened with age and fastened with iron braces instead of mortar. The Porta Nigra was a fortified city-gate, the exterior of which could be closed by a portcullis and defended by the two towers. If the enemy succeeded in storming the gate he found himself in a small enclosed court, secured on the side next the town by a barricade and exposed to a raking fire from all parts of the gate-house. — At both ends there are still traces of the junction of the gate with the walls, and at the W. end is a doorway, which opened on the ramparts. A portion of the old Roman wall has been uncovered on the N.E. side of the gate, underneath the medieval wall. In 1028-35 the E. tower was occupied by a Greek hermit named Simeon, and on his death the structure was converted into two churches, one above the other. In 1817 all the later additions were removed except the apse at the E. end, and in 1876 the original Roman structure was thoroughly disclosed".--Baedeker 1911. Part of the Roman Monuments, Cathedral of St Peter and Church of Our Lady in Trier UNESCO World Heritage site. DSC_0715