Nijmegen, Valkhof

The Valkhof Museum in Nijmegen, the capital of the ancient Batavians, is one of the most important archaeological museums in the Netherlands. It has a splendid collection with finds from six Roman settlements:

the Kopse Hof (once the HQs of Drusus, later used as fort by a unit of mounted auxiliaries);
the Hunerberg (a legionary base, used by Drusus);
Batavodurum (a town destroyed during the Batavian Revolt in 69-70);
Ulpia Noviomagus (built after the revolt);
the Hunerberg (again in use as legionary base, by X Gemina, to control the Batavians);
the late-Roman castle at the Valkhof, almost at the site of former Batavodurum.

Many objects tell a little story. I select the silver medallion that once belonged to one Gnaeus Aquillius Proculus, centurio of the Eighth Legion Augusta, found at the Kopse Hof auxiliary fort. This man is known to have played a role during the Batavian Revolt. When the forts along the lower Rhine were attacked, he was able to bring the garrisons to Nijmegen, where they were – for the time being – safe.

This would have been interesting enough: it is not often that archaeologists find an object that belonged to someone we know from the written sources. However, the object proves something else: that shortly before the revolt, the Romans sent soldiers of the Eighth legion Augusta, which was at that moment stationed at Sishtov in Bulgaria, to Nijmegen. This strongly suggests that the Romans were aware that the Batavians were becoming restless, which proves that the governor, Hordeonius Flaccus, was more capable than the historian Tacitus wants us to believe. He presents us with a Roman commander who is incompetent, indolent, and decadent, but archaeology proves otherwise.

The museum, which offers several other collections and a splendid view on the Nijmegen bridge (of World War II fame), is closed on Mondays. You can find photos from the museum here and here.

This museum was visited in a/o 2008-2019.

78 pictures related to this museum

Tomb of a girl of about ten years old	Julia Maesa	Coin commemorating Drusus' German victories, minted by his son Claudius	Faustina II
Part of a fresco	Coin of Vespasian, showing a personification of Judaea mourning the loss of her independence. Legend: JUDAEA CAPTA, "Judaea conquered".	Monument to Tiberius: Ceres	Nijmegen, oil lamp with a portrait of Mercury
Cavalry mask	Monument to Tiberius: Apollo	Nijmegen, Rim of an amphora, mentioning its Macedonian owner (EDCS-71200321)	Double temple, Mercury
Nijmegen, Dedication by Candidinius, signifer of XXX Ulpia Victrix (EDCS-11100813)	Copy of an inscription from Rome, mentioning Noviomagus (EDCS-22900218)	Oil lamp, Jupiter and his eagle	Tiberius
Elst, temple, model	Batavian horsemen	Otacilia Severa	Inscription mentioning three relatives in X Gemina (Nijmegen; EDCS-11100826)
Inscription of Bisius of X Gemina (Nijmegen; EDCS-11100827)	Amber carving of Amor	Cavalry mask	Diploma from Elst (EDCS-24600743)
Ring of a shoemaker (EDCS-11801061)	Tombstone of Scanius of X Gemina (Nijmegen; EDCS-08901053)	Helmet from the Hunerberg	Unfinished bronze statuette of Luna, from the civil settlement near the Hunerberg fort
British mirror	Aquilia Severa	Silver pan	Valentinian I
Objects from the tomb of a fourth-century lady	Agraphe with christogram	Helmet from the Kops Plateau	Glass vase
Silver panhandle with portrait of Tyche or Cybele	Double temple, Fortuna	Nijmegen, terra sigillata with the Thracian name "Mucatra"	Nijmegen, Valkhof, Oil lamp with Victoria
Cavalry mask	Tomb of a ten-year old girl	Julia Soeamias	Herennia Etruscilla
Tile	Monument to Tiberius: Diana	Cavalry mask	Nijmegen, Monument to Tiberius: sacrifice (EDCS-20500331)
Crystal dice	Nijmegen, Aquillius Medal (EDCS-11801060)	Tile	A Frankish sword and spear, found in Lent, across the Waal River
Nijmegen, terra sigillata with an inscription "Carnuntum"	Oil lamp, erotic scene	Cornelia Superia	Ulpia Severina
Lucilla	Tambourine of a tomb of a ten-year old girl	Late antique pottery	Fresco from one of the officers' mansions at the Hunerberg
Runic inscription	Dedication to Vesta (EDCS-11100823)	Crystal ring	Pile-shoe
Imported mackerel	Terra sigillata	Oil lamp with gladiators saluting the organizer of the games	The Herwen Mole Inscription (EDCS-25800680)
Roman coin, commemorating the annexation of Arabia Nabataea	Nijmegen, inscription of an aquilifer of X Gemina	Beek, Milestone (EDCS-12400325)	Nijmegen, Dedication to the Mopatian Mothers by Liberius (EDCS-11100819)
Cavalry mask, found in the Beekmansdal east of the Hunerberg	Bronze object mentioning LEG HISP IX, from Ewijk	Helmet from the Kops Plateau	Theodosius I
Amber portait of a girl	Closed gate of Janus