The beautiful town of Trier in Western Germany sits in a narrow valley on the River Moselle close to Germany’s borders with France and Luxembourg. It might be Germany’s oldest town but its university and vibrant cultural scene endows it with a feeling of youth and vitality.
The Romans called Trier their ‘Roma Secunda’, their second Rome. Even today Trier is often referred to as Rome’s Little Sister. Trier started life in approximately 16 BC as Augusta Treverorum and is still dominated by 2000 years of Roman culture. In many ways Trier is Rome without the crowds. Rome has its Colosseum (also spelled Coliseum) and St Peter’s Cathedral while Trier has its Basilica and Amphitheatre.
The Porta Nigra
The most famous monument is the almost perfectly preserved Porta Nigra (the Black Gate). The gate stands at the entrance to the pedestrianised old town right next to Simeonstrasse, Trier’s most popular shopping street.
The sheer size of the Porta Nigra gives a good indication of just how large the Roman city must have been in its heyday. The gate provided an effective defence against Roman enemies and secondly it symbolised Roman power.
The gate measures 36 metres across the front with a height of some 30 meters. Originally it had two carriageways and a portcullis with a heavily strengthened gate. The walls, built in the second century, were made from grey sandstone blocks, some weighing up to six metric tons, held together by iron clamps. The clamps resemble giant staples. The bent ends of the staples were embedded into holes in the blocks and these holes were filled with molten lead. In some of the holes on the outside wall you can see traces of rust because in the Middle Ages the local population removed the metal for recycling. One clamp is still visible inside the gate near the eastern spiral staircase. The inside of the Porta Nigra, with its many carved statues, is definitely well-worth exploring.
The Porta Nigra is one of five gates set into the four mile-long (6.4 kilometres) city wall. It got its name in medieval times from the layer of black soot that eventually covered it.
Why did the Porta Nigra survive?
The survival of the walls is probably thanks to a Greek monk named Simeon. He lived as a hermit walled up in the eastern tower from about 1028. On his death in approximately 1034 he was made a saint and, in accordance with his wishes, he was buried inside the gate.
To honour Simeon the inner court of the gate was roofed over and transformed into a church. In addition, a monastery, “Simeonstift”, was erected close to the Porta Nigra.
The Dissolution and Napoleon Bonaparte
Both church and monastery were demolished at the start of the nineteenth century together with most of the town’s monasteries and churches after dissolution by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802. Bonaparte did, however, order the reconstruction of the Porta Nigra. The top level of the eastern tower was removed and this is the only real damage to the massive stone gate. You can still see traces of Roman stone masons’ chisel marks together with some date inscriptions.
World Heritage Status
The Porta Nigra achieved World Heritage status in 1986 as did many other Roman monuments in Trier.
For a small fee you can climb up the fortified Roman gateway for a superb view of the city and surrounding countryside.
German National Tourist Board (GNTB), Beethovenstraße 69, 60325 Frankfurt/Main
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