Roman Watchtower 15/46

From Wp 15/34, the Limes runs in an easterly direction, gently sloping to the southeast. A slight bend can be seen at the now barely discernible remains of the 4.5 x 4.8 meter stone tower Wp 15/46. From there, the Raetian Wall was surveyed almost exactly on a west-east axis. As the Reichs-Limes-Kommission (RLK) was able to determine, the tower faced north. The Limes wall was subsequently built onto its northwestern and northeastern corners. About five meters west of the stone tower lay the older wooden tower mound, which is almost cut in half by the Limes wall. At Wp 15/46, a lookout tower built in rustic log construction was erected, which, however, has little in common with the wooden watchtowers that once stood on the Upper Germanic-Raetian Limes. From Wp 15/46, there was a line of sight to the watchtower on the Weinsberg on the right bank of the Danube to the south, and from there to the Eining fort.

The Upper Germanic-Raetian Limes, with a length of 550 km, from Eining near Regensburg to Rheinbrohl on the Rhine, is the largest archaeological monument in Germany and has been recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Limes (Latin: border path/wall) refers to the border fortifications of the Roman Empire, which were built towards the end of the 1st century AD.

This border was monitored by more than 900 towers, which were built in timber construction during the initial phase from about 80 AD. Stone towers followed, which were plastered from 150 AD. Excavations have shown that the white plaster often had cracked joints that were painted in terracotta. This created the impression of beautiful ashlar masonry.