Mysterious cellar discovery in Vienna: Was it a Roman prison?

Mysterious cellar discovery in Vienna: Was it a Roman prison?

In the lively city of Vienna, ongoing infrastructure projects are not just about modern developments, but also about uncovering fascinating relics from the past. Urban archeology sees these excavations as both a challenge and an opportunity to finally shed light on the partially hidden part of Vienna's history. Kristina Adler-Wölfl, the curator of the new exhibition in the Roman Museum, emphasizes that the excavations are of great importance for our understanding of the city's history. At the Vienna farmers' market in 2021 and 2022, a remarkable stone block was discovered that covered a narrow window in the outer wall of a deep cellar.

The cellar, which is five meters deep and has an area of ​​450 m², is unique for the Roman Danube Limes. The current exhibition “Cellar Stories” in the Roman Museum deals intensively with the circumstantial process used to determine the purpose of this cellar. It was originally shared with the Roman legionary camp and dates back to the 4th century AD. Possible uses for the room ranged from a mithraeum, i.e. a sanctuary for the god Mithras, to a horreum, i.e. a grain and storage warehouse, to a carcer, a prison. The available evidence strongly favors the last two variants, with the depth of the room and the high window suggesting that it was used as a prison.

The everyday life of the prisoners

Historical documents report the poor prison conditions in Roman dungeons, characterized by little light and unhygienic conditions. This cellar also remains unclear who was imprisoned there, as it lacks typical evidence such as shackles or graffiti that are often found in other Roman prisons. The cellar's function as a potentially overcrowded prison could be related to the high number of prisoners of war in late antiquity.

In parallel to these exciting finds, an extraordinary archaeological project is also being worked on in Hasenleitengasse, which could have a profound impact on the history of Vienna's origins. Here, historians and archaeologists have made a find that is being subjected to more detailed investigation, including DNA and isotope analysis as well as geophysical studies of the grave environment. The method of burial is particularly interesting, as human bodies were left unburned in the earth - an exception in the Roman world, where cremations were common around the year 100 AD.

Insights into Vienna's past

If you think about Vienna's Roman history, it quickly becomes clear that this was a time full of challenges and upheavals. The decades between AD 50 and 120 were relatively peaceful, but Emperor Domitian's Danube Wars in AD 81 to 96 led to dramatic changes as Germanic groups crossed the Roman border. These conflicts left deep traces and led to Emperor Trajan massively expanding the Danube Limes fortification line. It remains exciting to observe how Vienna's urban archeology, based at the Obere Augartenstrasse site, deals with the hail of shards of history and presents valuable finds to a broad public.

In summary, Vienna not only shapes the present, but also researches and documents the exciting past. Whether in the Roman Museum or during the current excavations in Hasenleitengasse, Viennese history is increasingly coming to light - and exciting things are waiting to be discovered.

You can find out more about this under the links to the Kurier, Magazin Wien Museum and History Wiki Vienna.