Schwarzenacker Roman Museum is an archaeological open-air museum in Schwarzenacker, a district of Homburg, Saarland, Germany. The museum was constructed by archaeologist Alfonso Kolling, who also led the archaeological excavations at the site. Current director is Klaus Kell.
The Museum shows the remains of a Roman vicus (country town) of approximately 2000 inhabitants which existed from the time of the birth of Christ until its destruction by the Alemanni in 275 AD. Visitors can view the excavated buildings, grounds, roads and culverts.
In the adjoining 18th century villa and the reconstructed houses of the vicus important finds from the everyday life of the Roman population are exhibited, found either at the settlement itself or in the surrounding area. At the front steps of the villa stand life-size replicas of Roman equestrian statues which were discovered in 1887 in nearby Breitfurt. The originals stood for many years at the entrance of the Historical Museum of the Palatinate in Speyer, but they were removed and placed in the courtyard of the museum under a canopy, since they were heavily weathered due to environmental factors.
The early 18th Century (c. 1725) villa was designed by Jonas Erikson Sundahl. Besides the Roman exhibits, the villa also contains paintings by Johann Christian von Mannlich and other period painters of the region. The villa has a landscaped garden in the Baroque style, which was created following the excavation of the vicus.
References:Ogrodzieniec Castle is a ruined medieval castle originally built in the 14th–15th century by the W³odkowie Sulimczycy family. Established in the early 12th century, during the reign of Boles³aw III Wrymouth, the first stronghold was razed by the Tatars in 1241. In the mid-14th century a new gothic castle was built here to accommodate the Sulimczycy family. Surrounded by three high rocks, the castle was well integrated into the area. The defensive walls were built to close the circuit formed by the rocks, and a narrow opening between two of the rocks served as an entrance.
In 1470 the castle and lands were bought by the wealthy Cracovian townsmen, Ibram and Piotr Salomon. Then, Ogrodzieniec became the property of Jan Feliks Rzeszowski, the rector of Przemy¶l and the canon of Cracow. The owners of the castle about that time were also Jan and Andrzej Rzeszowskis, and later Pilecki and Che³miñski families. In 1523 the castle was bought by Jan Boner.