What kind of border was the Roman Limes, and how has modern scholarship shaped its interpretation? Established in the 80s CE, the Lower German Limes stretched from present-day Katwijk in the Netherlands to Remagen in Germany and has been central to Dutch Roman archaeological research for decades. Its inscription as UNESCO World Heritage in 2021 has further intensified scholarly as well as and public interest.
Traditionally represented as a linear territorial boundary, the Limes has increasingly been reinterpreted as a contact zone or frontier landscape. This contribution first reviews current archaeological understandings of the Limes’ border functionality. It then introduces the concept of imperial borderlands as an interpretative framework. Emphasizing imperial dynamics encourages an interpretive framework that moves beyond a predominantly military reading of the frontier.
Viewing the Lower German Limes as an imperial borderland highlights societal interaction, cross-border connectivity, local power relations, and landscape transformation shaped by Roman presence. This approach enables a more inclusive understanding of the archaeological and geopolitical realities of the region, supports critical heritage discourse, and contributes to a broader reassessment of the Limes’ significance within the Roman Empire.
Der Vortrag ist Teil der Reihe "Mainzer Vorträge zur Römischen Archäologie" (MaVRA), gemeinsam veranstaltet von dem Arbeitsbereich für Klassische Archäologie der Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz und dem Leibniz-Zentrum für Archäologie.
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