Vicus Wareswald

Wareswald is an archaeological site comprising the remains of a Roman vicus (country town) in the district of Sankt Wendel in Saarland, Germany.

One road ran from Strasbourg (Roman Argentoratum) through the vicus of Schwarzenacker, now part of Homburg, to Trier (Augusta Treverorum).

According to the current explanation for the origin of the village, the numerous travelers using the roads created a demand for goods and services, which was met by merchants and artisans who settled here.

Possibly the road followed an Iron Age trade route, since fragmentary remains of an earlier Celtic settlement were found, identified by finds from the late La Tène period.

Local legends spoke of a "golden wagon buried in the earth with its shaft so near the surface that a hen could scratch it out".

The economic recovery throughout the region as Trier became an imperial residence in the early fourth century can also be seen Wareswald.

Activity in the settlement appears in the archaeological record until the end of the fourth century, at which time the vicus was abandoned and fell into ruin.

In this area half-finished bronze statuettes were found, along with the stone weight of a beam balance, weighing 100 Roman pounds (about 30 kilograms [66 lb]), that would probably not have been installed in a private home.

The discovery of two bronze nude figures of a youthful Mars wearing a plumed helmet, as well as numerous spearheads, make the assignment of the temple to the god of war appear justified.

As with the excavations in the settlement core, the material finds, especially the sequence of coins, cease by the end of the fourth century.

Situated directly on the Roman road, the monument not only served the cult of the dead but also displayed a representation of the family of the founder, who certainly had held a senior position in Wareswald.