Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Danube Limes (Western Segment)


World Heritage Identification Number: 1608

World Heritage since: 2021

Category: Cultural Heritage

Transboundary Heritage: Yes

Endangered Heritage: No

Country: Austria, Germany, Slovakia

Continent: NA

UNESCO World Region: Europe and North America

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The Danube Limes: A Glimpse into the Western Segment of the Roman Empire's Frontier

The Danube Limes, also known as the Danube Frontier or Danube Limes (Western Segment), is a significant archaeological site that offers insights into the strategic defense system established by the Roman Empire along the River Danube. This segment, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2021, spans nearly 600 kilometers across several European countries, including Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, and Slovenia.

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UNESCO Description of the World Heritage Site

It covers almost 600km of the whole Roman Empire’s Danube frontier. The property formed part of the much large frontier of the Roman Empire that encircled the Mediterranean Sea. The Danube Limes (Western Segment) reflects the specificities of this part of the Roman Frontier through the selection of sites that represent key elements from roads, legionary fortresses and their associated settlements to small forts and temporary camps, and the way these structures relate to local topography. 

Encyclopedia Record: Danubian Limes

The Danubian Limes, or Danube Limes, refers to the Roman military frontier or limes which lies along the River Danube in the present-day German state of Bavaria, in Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania.

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Additional Site Details

Area: 821.7474 hectares

UNESCO Criteria: (ii) — Significant interchange of human values
(iii) — Unique or exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition
(iv) — Outstanding example of a type of building or landscape

Coordinates: 48.1151944444 , 16.8613888889

Image

Image of Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Danube Limes (Western Segment)

© Daniel Ullrich (Threedots), CC BY-SA 3.0 Resized from original. (This derivative is under the same CC BY-SA license.)

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Last updated: January 18, 2026

Portions of the page Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Danube Limes (Western Segment) are based on data from UNESCO — World Heritage List Dataset and on text from the Wikipedia article Danubian Limes, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes made. Additional original content by World Heritage Explorer (WHE), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. WHE is not affiliated with UNESCO or the World Heritage Committee. Legal Notice. Privacy Policy.

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