In Unterlunkhofen, a bit to the north of Oberlunkhofen that was discussed earlier, a wonderful discovery was made in 1890 by the farmer Ludwig Brumann. A few bathing rooms belonging to a villa were found on the slope of a hill. In two of the rooms were polychrome mosaics. The smaller mosaic has only geometric motifs. The larger one has a marine bull in the centre, surrounded by two marine horses and two dolphins. It has been assigned to the late second or early third century.
Plan of the rooms. Heierli 1891, Taf. XXIII.
In 1891 the site was visited by Jakob Heierli, alerted by a telegram. He describes the following find: "A fragment of a bronze statuette with a pedestal. In a niche on the front of the latter stands a female figure with a patella and beaker, and on the pedestal itself is a tortoise in the centre with a rooster on one side. Opposite this, the remains of the feet of a ruminant can be seen. Attributes of this kind point to Mercury, and the statuette itself, of which nothing has survived except the trace of where it stood, is identified by it".
The bronze base described by J. Heierli. Photo: Hartmann-Weber 1985, 202.J. Hunziger ensured the protection of the mosaics, after a legal procedure. They were lifted in 1892 and taken to the Historisches Museum in Baden the next year. Hunzinger also wrote a more detailed discussion of the remains. The water was adduced through lead pipes. Several rooms were heated, with the help of raised floors and terracotta pipes set against the walls. Remains of painted plaster, of marble floors, and of marble revetment of the walls were found. The building was destroyed by a fire.
Plan of the rooms. Hunziker 1893.
The mosaics in the Historisches Museum in Baden. Photos: Von Gonzenbach 1961, Taf. 21.
The mosaics in the Historisches Museum in Baden. Photos: Flickr, chrchr_75.
Literature
Heierli 1891; Hunziker 1893; Hartmann-Weber 1985, 202-204; Von Gonzenbach 1961, 218-222; Delbarre-Bartschi 2014, 87-88, 274.
[26-Aug-2023]
