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Porta Nigra.
Sightseeing in Trier usually starts with a visit to the main place of interest - Porta Nigra , which can be translated from Latin as “the black gate”. Porta Nigra is the northern gate of the city. It was built around 180 AD. At that time the gate was a part of the Roman city wall. The length of the wall estimated 6.5 km, its width was 3 m, and its height was 7.5 meters. The gate got its name later, mostly because of its black color – Porta Nigra was built from sandstone that got darker with time. Starting from 1028, Porta Nigra became the place of a 7 year long voluntary confinement of a Greek monk-hermit named Simeon, an accredited representative of the Archbishop of Trier. The residence of the monk was made on the lowest floor of the east tower. It had no windows and its entrance was bricked up by request of Simeon. Shortly after his death the monk was canonized, and in his honor Porta Nigra was rebuilt into the double church of St. Simeon by order of the archbishop. This is the reason why the Roman gate has managed to survive.

For centuries Porta Nigra has served a variety of purposes. The gate between the two towers was filled by land. The street from the side of the city rose directly to the second floor. The lower church was located there. It served as a parish church for common people. The church on the third floor was closer to the sky and it belonged to the monastery built nearby. Despite this, common people often called Porta Nigra the structure of the devil – the gate was erected without any cement or mortar as it was common to the Romans.
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