A "hotspot" on the Limes
As tranquil as the municipality of Mautern may seem, the ancient town of Favianis was something of a transportation hub. An important crossing point was established here on the Danube into the Kamp Valley ("Kamptal" in German) and further into "Germania magna". For centuries, a Roman fort had secured the Limes - the border of the Roman Empire. Watchtowers, so-called "Burgi" - stretched along the Danube. Remains of them have survived to this day.
This strategically important location was accordingly turbulent when the Roman Empire began to totter. Back then, in the 5th century of our era, a courageous man worked here: Saint Severin proselytized in Favianis until his death in 482 and even founded a monastery. We owe much of what we know today about this distant time of upheaval in our region to him: from the famous work "The Life of St. Severin", written by Eugippius.
Would you have guessed it?
In Roman times, Favianis was virtually a "commercial center". This is also suggested by many historical finds in the Mautern Roman Museum. Among the numerous trades practiced were non-ferrous metal casting, iron smithing, bone carving, tanning, textile production, baking and, in the later phase, pottery in particular.
