Ancient Roman ruins found in Germany help solve 140-year-old mystery, photos show

Walking through the center of Aachen, Germany, the city feels as if it’s been around awhile. The narrow cobblestone streets ignore the existence of cars, and the imposing town hall could be a set for a period drama.

Even the city’s mysteries are old. Like the one about an ancient Roman fort.

For 140 years, people have suspected the ruins of an ancient Roman defensive structure were buried somewhere in Aachen, archaeologist Andreas Schaub said in a March 19 news release from the city.

And another clue — a set of Roman ruins — was recently unearthed.

Archaeologists were excavating a street near the historic city center as part of a construction project when they found a ruined wall, city officials said. The wall was immediately recognized as an ancient Roman construction.

Uncover more archaeological finds

What are we learning about the past? Here are three of our most eye-catching archaeology stories from the past week.

→ Boys found rare silver treasure under church, kept it in box for 60 years

→ 'Rare' 400-year-old tomb — with well-preserved interior — found in China

→ Stone sarcophagi went unopened for 600 years — until now

The rock-built wall is about 3 feet wide and at least 23 feet long, archaeologists said. Only a middle section has been uncovered, so the full length of the structure is unknown. A photo shows the large white-brown stones that make up the wall.

Archaeologists identified the ruins as part of a 1,700-year-old Roman fort, city officials said.

The ancient Roman fort was constructed in the third century A.D. to protect the city, the city said in a March 21 Facebook post. The complex included a wall, round towers and a ditch. The structure lasted until the 12th century, when it was demolished.

The location of the ancient Roman fort was forgotten until a section of the ditch was rediscovered in 2011, the city said. Now, archaeologists believe that the 1,700-year-old fort had a circular shape and enclosed the central market hill.

A diagram shows the outline of the fort in relation to the modern-day city center.

Excavations are ongoing. Archaeologists plan to further excavate and study the 1,700-year-old wall, the city said.

Aachen is about a 410-mile drive southwest of Berlin and is along the Germany-Belgium-Netherlands border.

Google Translate was used to translate the news release and Facebook post from the City of Aachen.

4,300-year-old tomb of palace official found in Egypt. See its ‘wonderful’ decoration

‘Spectacular’ ancient burials — with 5,000-year-old chariot grave — found in Germany

Metal detectorist stumbles on 650-year-old artifact — and sparks a mystery. See it