Augusta Raurica

Augusta Raurica is a Roman archaeological site and an open-air museum in Switzerland located on the south bank of the Rhine river about 20 km east of Basel near the villages of Augst and Kaiseraugst [1]. Successful colonization of the site had to wait for Augustus' conquest of the central Alps around 15 BC [1]. The oldest find to date at Augusta Raurica has been dated to 6 BC by dendrochronology [1]. During excavations it was determined that the city was founded on a high plateau just south of the Rhine river [1]. Augusta Raurica prospered between the 1st and 3rd centuries, and exported smoked pork and bacon to other parts of the Roman Empire [1]. The city possessed the typical amenities of a Roman city, an amphitheatre, a main forum, several smaller forums, an aqueduct, a variety of temples, several public baths and the largest Roman theatre north of the Alps, with 8,000 to 10,000 seats [1]. In 250 AD, a powerful earthquake damaged a large part of the city [1].