House of the Ram (La Maison au Bélier)
Location
Sublocation Description
Durocortorum was mentioned by Caesar as the center of the Remi, a Celtic tribe that sided with the Romans against the Belgians. It then became a federated city, nominally independent. Under Augustus, it became the capital of Gallia Belgica. Many vestiges indicate that it was densely settled and unusually extensive. A network of water supply and sewers has been found; an aqueduct brought water from 40 kilometers. The cardo and decumanus are still identifiable today by vestiges of four gates with arches, the northern one still standing; they cardo and decumanus intersect at the present Place Royale. Today, the city is known for its magnificent Gothic cathedral and its fine champagnes.
Garden
House of the Ram (La Maison au Bélier)
Keywords
Garden Description
BEL 2.3.1: Reims, House of the Ram Excavated in 1992-93 by Agnès Balmelle, this vast house probably covered about 2000 square meters. The date of construction is rather uncertain; it could be as early as the end of the first century or as late as the second half of the second (Fig. 1) The excavations have revealed a portico (A) (20 x 3 m) opening onto an open space which may have been a garden. It was bordered on the southwest by drain which no doubt collected rainwater from the roof and led it away to the northwest. A well (E) was in the north gallery or corridor (B).
Maps
None Available
Plans
None Available
Images
None Available
Dates
Unspecified
Bibliography
- A. Balmelle, Reims, Le site de la villa des Capucins (site n°51 454 129) : D.F.S. de sauvegarde urgent, S.R.A. Champagne-Ardenne, 1995
- A. Balmelle, R. Neiss, Les maisons de l'élite à Durocortorum, in Archéologie urbaine à Reims, Bulletin de la société archéologique champenoise, t. 96, 2003, 4, p. 82. (worldcat)