Overview
- Archaeologists from RAAP and BAAC have uncovered a Roman bathhouse complex at the Waalfront in Nijmegen that covers at least 4,900 square meters, making it the largest known in the Netherlands.
- The complex is unusually intact, with marble‑faced interior walls, black‑and‑white limestone floors, colorful painted plaster, decorative stone columns, an intact hypocaust heating system, and foundations up to about two metres high.
- Teams recovered tens of thousands of objects including jewelry, signet rings, bronze statue fragments, a bronze bust of Bacchus, and hundreds of bone hairpins, two of which are decorated with cat figures.
- A large number of coins from Emperor Postumus and his contemporaries indicate the district remained in active use well into the late third century, which changes earlier ideas that the area had declined by that time.
- The site lies on land slated for new housing by developer BPD, and Nijmegen officials are exploring ways to preserve or display the remains in situ while selected finds will go on public view in a city hall vitrine from 29 June 2026.