In Arch, a village on the river Aare, some 16 kilometers to the north-east of Biel, part a road was investigated in 1991. The road was made in the first century and led from Aventicum (Avenches VD) to Salodurum (Solothurn).
View of the excavated road with subsequent gravel layers. Photo: information panel.The excavated stretch was 40 m. long. The road was 6 m. wide and made of gravel. Cart tracks of two lanes were found, 1.4 m. apart, and partly overlapping. Next to the road was a path made of pebbles. On either side was a ditch. The road was renewed seven times, by covering the old surface with a new gravel bed.
Reconstruction drawing of the road. From the information panel.On top of the road a milestone was found, a reused part of a column. It mentions Emperor Carinus (283-285 AD) and records the distance to Aventicum: 20 leagues (leugae) of 2222 m. Radiocarbon dating confirmed that the road is Roman. A section of the road can today still be seen in a protective building at the intersection of the Aarestrasse and the Römerstrasse West.
Literature
Bacher-Ramseyer 1994; Herzig 1994.
[9-Nov-2023]
