The 1950s marked a decisive phase in the archaeological preservation of Carnuntum. Archaeological work was quickly resumed after the war, but infrastructural threats increased. The year 1955 symbolizes the beginning of a modern monument preservation policy in Lower Austria. In Carnuntum, the aim was now to integrate the individual excavation projects into an overarching museum concept.

The restoration of the Great Baths under Erich Swoboda, which was opened to the public in 1958, took center stage. This was the first time that a Roman city quarter in Austria was staged as a museum ensemble and a new form of archaeological communication was created that made scientific findings comprehensible to a broad public.

Eduard Vorbeck during the excavations on Gräberstraße in 1954 - © Land NÖ

The Carnuntinum Museum was reopened in 1950 and transferred in its entirety to the ownership of the Province of Lower Austria in 1953. Under the direction of curator Karl Kutschera, the holdings were reorganized and the collection of the estate owner Rudolf Ludwigstorff was purchased, considerably increasing the size of the museum. In 1952, Eduard Vorbeck took over the management of the Carnuntum branch and published his collection of military inscriptions in 1954. 

The Carnuntinum Museum at its reopening in 1950 - © Land NÖ

1960s and 1970s: Further excavations and scientific progress

At the beginning of the 1960s, excavations began under the direction of Hermann Vetter. The uncovering of the Great Baths and the investigations in the legionary camp and at various temple sites are particularly noteworthy. Further excavations took place in the 1970s, and scientific publications about Carnuntum were released.

In 1973, the Lower Austrian provincial exhibition “The Romans on the Danube” in Petronell brought Carnuntum to public attention. But it was not until 1988, with the establishment of the Carnuntum Archaeological Park, that a new era of museum presentation began. The park and the redesign of the Archaeological Museum under Werner Jobst made a decisive contribution to the popularization of Roman history in the region.

With the emergency excavations of the Limes Commission and the ÖAI by Manfred Kandler on the “Mühlacker” field, the excavation of the second large Iuppiter sanctuary on Carnuntum soil began in 1978 and continued until 1991.  With the large-scale emergency excavations on the Pfaffenberg, which completely destroyed the archaeological substance and were followed by Herma Stiglitz's excavations in the auxiliary fort from 1978 onwards, the problem of storing and conserving large quantities of stone finds became acute.

Since the 1970s, research into Carnuntum has been limited to rescue excavations, which were carried out under considerable time pressure, with limited resources, and a lack of public understanding. Research excavations in the legionary camp and the Great Baths had to be discontinued in favor of rescuing material that was in acute danger due to construction projects, infrastructure measures, and material extraction. Initially, monument preservation faced an almost hopeless struggle against construction projects, plow damage, and looting. It was not until the 1980s that it became possible—not least thanks to media support—to curb the illegal trade in antiquities and ensure the long-term preservation of archaeological monuments by placing them under protection.

The 1980s also saw the introduction of new media such as electronic data processing, which facilitated access to archaeological data. The web platform “ubi erat lupa” helped to make stone monuments from Carnuntum and Central Europe accessible worldwide. These decades laid the foundation for the modern, international perception of Carnuntum as an important center of Roman archaeology. But it was not until 1988, with the establishment of the Carnuntum Archaeological Park, that a new era of museum presentation began. The park and the redesign of the Archaeological Museum under Werner Jobst made a decisive contribution to the popularization of Roman history in the region.