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Founded: 10 BCCategory: Prehistoric and archaeological sites in France
Historical period: Roman Gaul (France)
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Corseul was called Fanum Martis ('Temple of Mars') in Latin and was the capital of the Gallo-Roman province of Coriosolites. It was founded in 10 BC. In the 3rd and 4th centuries, like many other cities, Fanum Martis was renamed for its people, the Curiosolitae. This name change occurred as the Roman Empire weakened and paralleled a revival of the ancient Gallic gods in local religious sculptures and dedicatory inscriptions.
Monterfil, today in Corseul city centre, was the antic city’s trading area and was built on a Roman grid plan. It was laid out around a 10m wide central street and two main perpendicular lanes delineating the blocks or insulae. It was developed in the 1st century BC and remained active until the 3rd century AD when it was burnt. The site has been transformed into an elegant public garden known as Jardin des Antiques.
References:Visby Cathedral (also known as St. Mary’s Church) is the only survived medieval church in Visby. It was originally built for German merchants and inaugurated in 1225. Around the year 1350 the church was enlarged and converted into a basilica. The two-storey magazine was also added then above the nave as a warehouse for merchants.
Following the Reformation, the church was transformed into a parish church for the town of Visby. All other churches were abandoned. Shortly after the Reformation, in 1572, Gotland was made into its own Diocese, and the church designated its cathedral.
There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.