History
During sand extraction activities near Dreumel, Gelderland, large oak wooden piles were found near the hamlet of Moordhuizen.
They are likely pieces of wood from a Late Roman bridge at the confluence of the Meuse and Waal rivers, situated between the present-day Gelderland hamlet of Moordhuizen and the Brabant village of Lith.
Archaeologist Nils Kerkhoven is certain. He works for the archaeological service of the Municipality of Utrecht but is involved in the find as a private individual. "But I like to be certain."
Roman specialist Wouter Vos of Archeo Vos is still being cautious. He has placed the find in a broader context. "In theory, it could also be a jetty, a quay wall, or mooring posts." But he considers a bridge the most likely.
Roman bridge
Roman stone bridges from the fourth century are already known near Cuijk and Maastricht. Despite the tufa stones found at the Over de Maas project, Vos believes this involves a wooden bridge.
"At Cuijk and Maastricht, the foundation piles are considerably shorter." Because of the length of the piles, Vos opts for a wooden pile-frame bridge, which could be built and dismantled in a short time. Julius Caesar describes the construction of such a bridge across the Rhine in 55 BC in his book on the Gallic Wars, *De Bello Gallico*.
Moordhuizen bridge and road
Vos understands that four piles, despite their physical characteristics, are insufficient to base a hypothesis on regarding the presence of a Late Roman bridge. "Much of the wood has likely been washed away or sucked away, but there are additional clues." He points out that the piles were found at the spot where the river belt was narrowest. “Furthermore, a piece of Roman road surface was found in the form of a mixture of gravel, rubble, mortar, and ceramic building material.
Broader context
According to Vos, the construction of the bridge is part of the investments that Roman emperors such as Julian (331-363) and Valentinian (364-375) made in the infrastructure of the ‘Rhine region,’ about which the fourth-century Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus writes.
During that time, the rivers changed: less and less water flowed through the Rhine, and more through the Waal. So much so that, according to Vos, a land route from Nijmegen to the west became impassable at the confluence of the Meuse and Waal. “A diversion was necessary.” Therefore, according to Vos, a (temporary) bridge was constructed across the Meuse near Lith. Further along, possibly near Alem, the route was rerouted across the Meuse, to continue from there to the Helinium, the then-wide mouth of the Meuse and Waa
Description
Status
Dendrochronological research
The first of a total of four Roman wooden posts was found as early as 2018. This occurred in a sand extraction pit near the Meuse, where it partially protruded above the water. "We were unable to get it out of the ground in one piece with a machine," says Kerkhoven. "We have 11.50 meters in four pieces – we were unable to remove the tip, the base of which we could see." The post, measuring 30 by 40 centimeters, is estimated to have been more than 13 meters long.
Exact dating
At the RCE, dendrochronologists subsequently managed to date the wood exactly: 363 or 364 AD. This places the bridge in the same period as the bridge at Cuijk. There, the piles of the Roman quay were removed this year.
In 2010, a sand extraction project began at Dreumel. Prior to this, an archaeological firm had surveyed the 275-hectare area to determine whether archaeological research was necessary. The outcome was that nothing was to be expected, so the sand extractor was allowed to proceed. It soon became apparent that the area was full of archaeologically valuable remains.
Own initiative
Enthusiastic locals, including archaeologist Nils Kerkhoven, contacted the sand extractor, who granted them permission to conduct excavations on the immense site after all. They were also allowed to remove archaeological artifacts—ancient finds—from the conveyor belt on the sand dredger. While the volunteers received ample assistance from the Kerkhoven archaeology network, the Cultural Heritage Agency and the Province of Gelderland initially adopted a formal stance: they did not feel responsible for the countless finds, ranging from mammoth bones to canoes and ships, and stated that the volunteers were acting illegally. Following an investigation in 2021, which established that all parties had made mistakes, the situation has improved.
Collaboration
That is now a thing of the past; the agency and the province assisted with, among other things, the examination of the wooden piles. A wood specialist determined that the quality of the never-preserved wood had deteriorated significantly.
The archaeological treasure trove of the Netherlands
The region around Kessel-Lith on the Brabant side of the Maas and Dreumel-Moordhuizen on the Gelderland side of the Maas is of enormous archaeological importance. It is here that the Waal and the Maas almost meet. In sand excavations near Lth Kessel, enormous and significant finds have previously been made by amateur archaeologists such as Leo Stolzenbach. A Roman temple, remains of a Celtic sacrificial site, weapons and military artifacts, and a great deal of tufa stone. On the Gelderland side, several shipwrecks from the Roman period and the Middle Ages have been found.