Ambrussum
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Ambrussum (modern name Pont-Ambruis) is a Gallo-Roman archaeological site in Villetelle, Hérault département, in southern France.
It is close to the modern town Lunel, between Nîmes and Montpellier. Ambrussum is notable for its bridge (French: Pont Ambroix), painted by Gustave Courbet, and for its oppidum (fortified village, often at a higher elevation).
The site has a lower settlement (currently in the course of excavation) which was apparently abandoned due to flooding. The higher settlement was built later and within a surrounding wall including 21 towers.
The bridge was still usable in the Middle Ages, with all 11 arches, but when painted by Courbet in 1857 only two arches were left, and one of those was lost in flooding of the Vidourle River in 1933. A single arch remains.
The Roman road, the Via Domitia, visible with traces of Roman chariot tracks forming "railway tracks", leads up a hill, where ruins of habitations can be seen.
[edit] See also
Do the "railway tracks" have any bearing on the modern Rail gauge?
[edit] External links
- Website about Ambrussum (in French)
- Pictures of Ambrussum
- Webpage about Ambrussum (in French)
- Painting by Gustave Courbet
