Livius Picture Archive: Vechten (Fectio)

home : index : picture archive : Holland : photos by Jona Lendering ©
	Vechten (Fectio)
	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.
	*Fectio, modern Vechten, was a fort in the limes*, the frontier zone of the Roman empire, situated at the site of the bifurcation of the rivers Rhine (which continued to the North Sea) and Vecht (to Lake Flevo and the Frisians). Numismatic evidence suggests that it was founded by the Roman general Tiberius (the future emperor) immediately after the Roman defeat in the Teutoburg Forest in 9 CE. It was probably used as a military base during punitive raids.
	The civil settlement of Fectio was probably to the east of the fort, but excavation is not easy because there is a nineteenth-century military settlement on the site (Fort Vechten). This is the site of the ancient fort, seen from the entrance of its successor. Here you can see the site on a satellite photo.
	In 40, the emperor Caligula visited Fectio when he was travelling to Lugdunum. The remains of a wine barrel from his personal vinyard have been found. Some thirty years later, the fortress was destroyed during the Batavian revolt and rebuilt as base of a cavalry squadron. The river Rhine had already started to silt up, and was later to change its course. Pottery from the kilns of the Twenty-second legion Primigenia at Xanten belongs to this period.	from H. Sarfatij et al., In discussion with the past, 1999; ©!!!)
	During the reign of Antoninus Pius (138-161) the fort, seen here from the south, was again rebuilt, this time from brick and natural stone. However, by 200, the Rhine had become silted-up and Fectio was no longer accessible by water. The military settlement was destroyed in 275 and not reoccupied.
	Together with Nijmegen, Vechten is one of the best excavated sites in the Netherlands. This is a dagger and its scabbard, now in the Central Museum of Utrecht.
	A pen, also in the Central Museum. Apparently, it is hollow, and has small ink reservoir inside, so it is actually an ancient fountain pen.
	In 1894, one of the first Roman ships was excavated. Another very interesting discovery was the tombstone of a slave girl named Fledimella. The little monument, shown on the photo, is now at the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden in Leiden. Remarkable is also an inscription that mentions the shrine of a goddess named Viradecdis, who was venerated by Tungrians at Fectio. She was probably a Tungrian deity, because a similar shrine, dedicated by Tungrians to Viratetis, is known from Hadrian's wall.
	This is a cast of another inscription, now in the Museum für antike Schifffahrt in Mainz. The real monument is, again, in the Central Museum in Utrecht, but it is easier to read the cast than the original. Iovi Optimo Maximo Votum Solvit Libens Merito Gaius IVLIVS BIO TRIERARCHVS (more...) "Captain Gaius Julius Bio paid his vow to Jupiter, greatest and best of the gods, willingly and deservedly."
	The tombstone of Marcus Julius, son of Marcus, of the Fifth legion Alaudae can easily be dated, because this unit did not survive the Batavian revolt in 69/70. Of course, Marcus Julius is nothing more than a name to us, but he may have belonged to the soldiers who suppressed the Frisian revolt in 28 or the campaign of Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo in 47. This monument can be seen in the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Leiden.
	This is the tombstone of a soldier named Valens, son of Bititralis. He served in Fectio during the second century and belonged to a unit that was called the First Thracian Cavalry. This monument is also to be seen in the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Leiden. The site of ancient Fectio can be reached from the N411 main road, which connects Utrecht and Bunnik. At Vechten village, you have to go south, pass the tunnel underneath the A12 motorway, and immediately turn to the right.
	This little lane, full of curves, is called Marsdijk. You will see the nineteenth-century fort on your right hand. When you see the reconstructed Roman watch tower (seen here from the air), you can recognize the ancient military settlement as a very, very low hill to the west of its successor. The tower is erected out of wood and has three levels. The upper level probably served as armory; from the balcony, fire and smoke signals could be given to nearby forts (e.g., Traiectum in the northwest or Levefanum in the southeast). The middle level was used as a sleeping room and contained the entrance; and downstairs was a cellar.
	The Fectio watchtower was built in 2004 to remind visitors that Vechten once was an important military settlement. Several of these towers were situated on the southern bank of the Rhine. They are, until now, better known from Germany, where they have been excavated on several places (e.g., Rainau). This model is in the Limes Museum in Aalen. Literature Wilfried Hessing e.a., Romeinen langs de snelweg. Bouwstenen voor Vechtens verleden (1997 Abcoude)

home : index : Holland

Vechten (Fectio)

Literature