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Nijmegen

Unless otherwise indicated, pictures on this page © Marco Prins and Jona Lendering. Photos can be downloaded and used for non-commercial purposes, but you have to acknowledge Livius.
The Valkhof at Nijmegen, seen from the north. Photo Jona Lendering. Nijmegen was the capital of the Batavians. Their oldest settlement, called Batavodurum, was on this hilltop near the river Waal, called Valkhof (you can see it on a satellite photo here). Much of it is a park today, and is considered to be a monument. Excavation is therefore very difficult.
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So, there are only a couple of Roman remains visible, like this ancient column in the chapel that the German empress Theophanu (960-991; wife of Otto II) dedicated to Saint-Nicholas.
And here are some ancient roof tiles in the same building. It's not much, and most information about ancient Nijmegen had to be excavated during rescue excavations.
Photo Hannie van Leeuwen
Batavian cavalryman on a monument from Nijmegen. Museum Valkhof, Nijmegen (Holland). Photo Jona Lendering. The Batavians were well-known as cavalrymen, because they were able to cross rivers on horseback This monument, now in the beautiful Museum Valkhof in Nijmegen (like almost all objects on this webpage), shows cavalrymen on a monument found in Nijmegen.
Bust of Drusus. Koninklijke Musea voor Kunst en Geschiedenis, Brussel (Belgium). Photo Marco Prins. Bust of the Roman prince Drusus in the Koninklijke Musea voor Kunst en Geschiedenis in Brussels. In the years 16-13 BCE, he reorganized the strip of land along the Lower Rhine as a military zone. The oldest datable find from Nijmegen is from 10 BCE.

A very large fortress was built east of Batavodurum, on the hill that is now known as Hunerberg, situated on the south bank of the river Waal (a branch of the Rhine). In the years 12, 11, and 10, Drusus conquered Germania; but he died in 9 after an accident. His brother Tiberius finished the conquest in 8.
Roman victory monument from Nijmegen. Museum Valkhof, Nijmegen (Holland). Photo Jona Lendering. Detail of a Roman victory monument, honoring the Roman general Tiberius, who had finished the conquest of Germania, and had made the river Elbe the eastern border of the new province in 5 CE. It was probably erected after Tiberius had become emperor (in 14 CE). The four sides of the six meter-high column show a Roman citizen (probably Tiberius), crowned by Victoria; Diana; Apollo; Ceres.
Roman victory monument from Nijmegen. Museum Valkhof, Nijmegen (Holland). Photo Jona Lendering.
Roman victory monument from Nijmegen. Museum Valkhof, Nijmegen (Holland). Photo Jona Lendering.
Roman victory monument from Nijmegen. Museum Valkhof, Nijmegen (Holland). Photo Jona Lendering.
Roman victory monument from Nijmegen. Museum Valkhof, Nijmegen (Holland). Photo Jona Lendering.
Roman victory monument from Nijmegen. Museum Valkhof, Nijmegen (Holland). Photo Jona Lendering. A detail of the victory monument: the goddess Ceres. The monument must have stood somewhere on the Valkhof in the Batavian city, which may have been the home town of Chariovalda, a Batavian warrior fighting in the army of the Roman general Germanicus. It is the largest and oldest Roman monument in Holland.
to part two
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