The Romans

Bergkamen

The Romans

Eleven giant wooden soldiers gaze out over a wall into the countryside. The figures are four meters tall. They stand behind a 14-meter-long palisade made of oak and pine. The artist Dietrich Worbs from Oberaden created this work between 2004 and 2005. He used heavy oak logs to build them. Each figure weighs about 1.5 metric tons and is firmly anchored in the ground.

Connection to History

The soldiers stand at a historic site. Over 2,000 years ago, the Roman camp of Oberaden was located here. The eleven figures symbolize the year the camp was founded: 11 B.C. The Romans’ outer fortifications once ran right along this very spot. Today, the legionnaires gaze out at the modern surroundings as silent guardians from the past.

Craftsmanship and Details

Sculptor Dietrich Worbs carved the oak trunks with a chainsaw. He meticulously carved the faces and helmets out of the wood in great detail. Two of the soldiers are recognizable as centurions. These leaders wear a crosswise plume on their helmets. In technical terms, this ornament is called a crista transversa. The rough texture of the wood gives the figures a lifelike appearance.

Art and Nature

Wood as a material connects history with today’s natural environment. It evokes the trees and shrubs along the nearby Kuhbach. The Lippeverband has restored this waterway to a near-natural state. The artwork stands directly on a bike path near Jahnstraße. It takes visitors back to the time of the Roman legions in Westphalia.

Bergkamen

The Romans