Postage stamps: Places of interest - Germany / Federal Republic of Germany 2002 - 100 Euro Cent

The Porta Nigra, the "black gate", owes its name to the color of its façade. Because weathering, soot and dust made sandstone construction black over the centuries. Construction of the complex began in the second half of the 2nd century. Originally, the heavy sandstone blocks were assembled without mortar. They hold the building together by their own weight. The gate consists of a middle section with two gateways and two massive towers, which join right and left. Through the gate the arterial road to the Rhine ran into the Germanic provinces. The Porta Nigra is a landmark of Trier with its palatial architecture and is considered the best preserved Roman city gate north of the Alps. It belongs since 1986 with the cathedral, the Liebfrauenkirche and other Roman monuments in Trier to the world cultural heritage of UNESCO.