Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography Volume I Part 1.djvu/358

 S40 AUGUSTA TREVIBORUM. ^/- which have been mentioaed above, it retains no ves- tiges of antiquity. afC [£. H. B.l AUGUSTA TBEVIRORUM (rrtcr, or TrSvea, as the French call it), a town on the right bank of the Mosel, now in Uie Prussian territory. It was sometimes simplj called Augmrta, and sometimes under the later eny)ire Treviri, whence t^e modem name Trier. Caesar names no town among the Treviri. Trier is the Colonia Treviromm of Tadtus '(J7ut iv. 62). It is mentioned by Mela under the name of Augusta (iii. 2), and we may condnde frcHn the probable period of Mela that it was settled by Augustus. It appears from Tacitus (HisL iv. 77), that the Roman colonia was connected with the op- posite bank by a bridge, as the modem town is; and this suburb was called Vicus Voclamu, as we leara from sepulchral inscriptiois found on the left bank. Some commentatOTB have incorrectly supposed that Strabo (p. 194) speaks of this bridge; but he is speaking of bridging the Rhine. The walls of the town are also mentioned by Tacitus. Ausonius, who wrote in the second half of the fourth centuxy of the Christian aera, places Treviri fourth in his list of ^ noblles urbes,** a rank to which it was en- titled from being the head quarters of the Roman commanders on the Rhine, and the frequent residence of the Roman emperors or Caesars. From the middle of the third century of the Christian aora Trier was visited by the emperors, and in the fourth century it was the regular imperial residence in this division of Gallia. Trier was one of the sizty great towns of Gallia which were taken by the Franks wid the Alemanni, after the death of the emperor Aurelian, and recovered by Probus. (Fl. Vopiscus, ProbuSj c. 13.) The restoration of Trier seems to be due to the emperor Constantioe the Great, who from A. D. 306 to A. D. 331 frequently resided at Trier. The panegyric attributed to the rhetorician Kumenius, pronounced before Constantino at Trier in A. D. 310, speaks of the walls of the city as rising again; and the conclusion, from the words of the panegyrist, seems to be that Constantino rebuilt or repaired the walls of Trier. He may have consi- derably beautified the piace, but it is uncertain how much, ailer it had been damaged by the Germans. Eumenius mentions the great cirous of Trier, the basllicae, and the forum, as royal works. The city probably received other embellishments after the period of Constantine, and it was a flourishing place when Ausonius wrote. It had establishments for education, and a mint. Trier stands on level ground, sunounded by gentle hills, the slopes of which are covered with vines, as they were when Aus<Hiius visited the place. The Roman bridge over the Mosel, probably the work of Agrippa, existed till the French ware of Louis XIV. in 1689, when it is said to have been blown up. All that now remains of the original stmcture are the massive foundations and the piers. The arches were restored in 1717 — 1720. The blocks of the ancient stmcture are from six to nine feet long, three feet wide, and three feet high, with- out any cement. The piers are on an average 66 feet high and 21 wide. There are eight arohes. The bridge is 690 feet long and 24 wide. One of the dty gates remains, which recent excavations have shown to be in the line of the walls of the dty. This Porta Martls or Porta Nigra, as it was called in the middle ages, is a colossal work. It is a kind of quadrangle 115 feet long; and in the central or principal part it is 47, and in the two projecting '/ ^. .f • ' AUGUSTA VINDELICORUM. sides 67 feet deep: it is 91 feet lugh. It is four stories high in the flanks, but in one of the flanks only three stories remain. There are two gateways in the central part, each 14 feet wide; and over the gateways there is a chamber 52 feet long and 22 feet wide. This building is constrocted of great blocks of stone, without cement; some (rf them four to five fieet in length, and others ftxim seven to nine feet long. It is a stmcture of enormous strength, a gi- gantic and imposing monument. In the chamben there is a collection of Roman antiquities found in and about Trier: many of the sculptures are of ex- cellent workmanship. A view and plan of the Porta . . Nigra are given in the Dicdonary of Antiguiiie$, fr/^/f'' pr946. On the outside of tiie present town are Xht A^^^^ remains of the amphitheatre, which was induded^ within the ancient waUs. The longer axis is 219 feet, and the shorter 155. There are also remains of the ancient Thermae, whidi are constmcted of limestone and rows of bricks alternately, except the beautiful arches, which are entirely of Mck. These and other remains of Trier are described by Wytten- / bach, Recherches nor les AtUiquitia EomameSf ^, {7^ de Trhfesy and Fortchungenj &c. ; and also by other write™. [G. L.] AUGUSTA TRICASTINORUM, as Pliny (in. 4) calls it, or Augusta, as it is simply called in the Itineraries. It was on the road between Valentia ( Valence)^ on the Rhone, and Dea Vooontiorum (Die). It is said to be Aoutt-en-DioiSf on the Dr6me a branch of the Rhone, and in the department of Drime, D'Anville places Augusta Tricastinomm at St Pand- trois-ChdieauXf north of Orange; and the Augusta of the Itineraries at Aotute. There are said to be considerable remains at Aowte. [G. L.] AUGUSTA TRINOBANTUM. [Londujiujl] AUGUSTA VAGIENNORUM (Airyoiara Bo- yityy&y^ Ptol. ; an inscription, Orell. 76, has Auo. Bag. for Augusta Bagiennoram), the chief dty of the Ligurian tribe of the Vagienni, is mentioned both by Pliny and Ptolemy, and the former speaks of it as a place of importance. (Plin. iii. 5. s. 7 ; Ptol. iiL 1. § 35.) But though the name would lead us to suppose that it was a colony of Augustus, we have no account of its foundation, nor do an- dent authore afibrd any due to its position. It was placed by D'AnviUe at Vico, near Mondovi ; but a local antiquarian, Durandi, has satl^actorily proved that some Roman ruins still visible near Bene (a considerable town of Piedmont, situated betwera tho valleys of the Tanaro and the 5<ura, about 12 miles from the site cf Pollentia) are those of Augusta Vagiennomra. They comprise the remains ti an aqueduct, amphitheatre, baths, and other buildings, and cover a considerable extent of ground. The name of Bene is itself probably only a corraption of Bagienna, the form of the andent name which is found in documents of the middle ages. (Durandi, DeUC Auffusta de' Vagienni, Torino, 1769; Millin, Voy. en Piemonty vol. ii. p. 50.) [E. H. B.] AUGUSTA VEROMANDUORUM, tiie chief town of the Veramandui, who are mentioned by Caesar (J9. (r. ii. 4, 16). The name of this place first occurs in Ptolemy; and its identity with SL Quen^^ in the department of Aisne^ is proved by the Roman roads from Soiuont^ AmieMy ukl Bavay, which in- tersected here. [G. L.] AUGUSTA VINDELICORUM(A^oi>«rToOi>€i*u hthutiivi Avgdntrg)y the capital of Vindelida or Raetia Secunda, situated on the riven Lech (Licus) I and Wertacfi (Vindo ?). It was founded by Au- X i ^' /f'.t f Z - '^