The Roman-Germanic Museum (RGM, in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

: ''Römisch-Germanisches Museum'') is an archaeological museum in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It has a large collection of

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

artifacts from the Roman settlement of ''

Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium was the Roman colony in the Rhineland from which the city of Cologne, now in Germany, developed. It was usually called ''Colonia'' (colony) and was the capital of the Roman province of Germania Inferior and t ...

'', on which modern Cologne is built. The museum protects the original site of a Roman town villa, from which a large

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Roma ...

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

remains in its original place in the basement, and the related Roman Road just outside. In this respect the museum is an archaeological site. The museum also has the task of preserving the Roman cultural heritage of Cologne, and therefore houses an extensive collection of

Roman glass Roman glass objects have been recovered across the Roman Empire in domestic, industrial and funerary contexts. Glass was used primarily for the production of vessels, although mosaic tiles and window glass were also produced. Roman glass productio ...

from funerals and burials and also exercises archaeological supervision over the construction of the Cologne underground. Most of the museum's collection was housed at the Wallraf-Richartz Museum in Cologne until 1946. In the front of the museum the former northern town gate of Cologne with the inscription CCAA (for Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium) is on display in the building.

The museum

The Römisch-Germanisches Museum, which opened in 1974, is near

Cologne Cathedral Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese o ...

, on the site of a 3rd-century villa. The villa was discovered in 1941 during the construction of an air-raid shelter. On the floor of the main room of the villa is the renowned Dionysus mosaic. Since the mosaic could not be moved easily, the architects Klaus Renner and Heinz Röcke designed the museum around the mosaic. The inner courtyards of the museum mimic the layout of the ancient villa. In addition to the Dionysus mosaic, which dates from around A.D. 220/230, there is the reconstructed sepulchre of the legionary Poblicius (about A.D. 40). There is also an extensive collection of Roman glassware as well as an array of Roman and medieval jewellery. Many artefacts of everyday life in Roman Cologne — including portraits (e.g., of Roman emperor

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...

and his wife

Livia Drusilla Livia Drusilla (30 January 59 BC – 28 September AD 29) was a Roman empress from 27 BC to AD 14 as the wife of Roman emperor, Emperor Augustus Caesar. She was known as Julia Augusta after her formal Adoption in ancient Rome, adoption into the J ...

), inscriptions, pottery, and architectural fragments — round out the displays. On the night of 18 January 2007,

Cyclone Kyrill Cyclone Kyrill was a low-pressure area that evolved into an unusually violent European windstorm, forming an extratropical cyclone with hurricane-strength winds. It formed over Newfoundland on 15 January 2007 and moved across the Atlantic Oce ...

blew a sheet of plywood through the glass front of the museum right onto the Dionysus mosaic. The damage was repaired within a week. The museum has the world's largest collection of locally produced glass from the Roman period.Irene's Travelogues - Cologne Photos, Romano-Germanic Museum
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Books

* Gerta Wolff: ''The Roman-Germanic Cologne. A Guide to the Roman-Germanic Museum and City of Cologne''. J. P. Bachem: Cologne, 2002,

External links

Römisch-Germanisches Museum

www.colonia3d.de
computer aided animations and renderings of CCAA by

Köln International School of Design The Köln International School of Design (in short: KISD) is an institution of the Cologne University of Applied Sciences (''Technische Hochschule Köln'' or ''TH Köln'') and offers an interdisciplinary study program in the field of design. In 1 ...

Sources

{{Authority control Museums in Cologne Innenstadt, Cologne Archaeological museums in Germany Museums established in 1946 1946 establishments in Germany Museums of ancient Rome in Germany

The museum

See also

Books

External links

Sources