Römersteine (Roman Aqueduct), Mainz

They rise from the meadow like weathered teeth: in the Zahlbach valley in south-west Mainz stands a long row of grey stone piers. Locals simply call them the Römersteine, the Roman stones. They are the remains of an aqueduct that brought water to the Roman legionary fortress of Mogontiacum almost 2,000 years ago. Where you now stand next to a block of masonry, a water channel once ran up to 25 metres above the ground.

History: water for two legions

After the turmoil of the Year of the Four Emperors (68/69 AD), Emperor Vespasian had the Mainz double-legion fortress rebuilt in stone, and around 70 AD work began on a stone aqueduct. Tile stamps along its course show it was built by the Fourteenth Legion, dating it to between 69 and 92 AD.

It was long said to be about nine kilometres long, starting at a spring near Finthen. So far around 3.8 km of the above-ground section have been securely identified, ending at a distribution basin near today's university hospital. Crossing the Zahlbach valley at up to 25 metres high, it is considered the tallest aqueduct north of the Alps.

What to see

• Row of piers: The remains of 69 piers of Roman concrete; a few still have parts of their stone facing.
• Arches: The aqueduct crossed the valley on two tiers of arches; the spacing of the piers hints at how they were spanned.
• More traces: Further pier remains survive near the university sports grounds and on Koblenzer Straße, and parts of the collecting basin are on the university hospital site.

Good to know

The "Knights of Ageduch", said to have lived here and carried an aqueduct arch in their coat of arms, turned out to be a 19th-century forgery by the historian Franz Joseph Bodmann. The name Finthen probably derives from Latin "fontanetum", place of springs.

Practical information (as of October 2026)

The Römersteine stand in the open in a green corridor and are freely accessible with no admission charge; a footpath runs along the piers. The Initiative Römisches Mainz society presents tours and other Roman sites in the city.

Tripto tip

Allow 30 to 45 minutes. Combine it with a Roman tour of Mainz: the Drusus Stone at the citadel, the Roman theatre by the station of the same name, then the piers in the Zahlbach valley. In winter, with bare trees, the long row is easiest to see.