Porta Nigra Entrance Gateway

Porta Nigra entrance gateway. 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. "Porta Nigra, a well-preserved town-gate of the Roman period (second half of the 3rd cent. A. D.), 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. In the 11th cent, the structure was converted into a church, provided with an apse on the E. side, and named after St. Simeon, a Greek hermit (d. 1035) who had lived in the E. tower. In 1817 all the later additions were removed except the apse at the E. end, and in1876 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. IMG_3767p1