This is where the Agrippa Road crossed the Erft on its way from Cologne to Zülpich. Today heavily regulated, in Roman times the river flowed in numerous loops and meanders from its source near Nettersheim to its mouth at Neuss.
It is now highly doubtful that the Romans transported the lime burned in Iversheim by ship across the Erft to the Rhine, as the river is too shallow in the Eifel region. However, from Bliesheim downstream, transport on flat-bottomed boats is thought to have been possible, allowing, for example, agricultural products from the numerous surrounding estates to be transported to Neuss, where the Novaesium legionary camp was located directly next to the river mouth. From the 1st century AD, a stone bridge crossed the Erft there.
It is not known whether the Romans also built a bridge for the Agrippa Road to cross the river or whether there was only a ford here. It can be assumed that there was a settlement or guard post in the immediate vicinity, as was often the case at Roman river crossings. However, archaeological research has not yet provided any concrete evidence of its exact location.
