The Roman Games

Step into the Roman Empire. On 26 September, Rusovce will come alive with the atmosphere of ancient times!

Experience an extraordinary journey back to the era of the mighty Roman Empire, right where a Roman military camp once stood as part of the northern frontier of the Roman Empire.

The one-day ROMAN GAMES festival will feature Roman legionaries, gladiators, historical combat demonstrations, ancient crafts, music, creative workshops, lectures, discussions, children’s activities and themed Date with the City walks.

One of the festival’s main venues will be Ancient Gerulata, which has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site “Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Danube Limes” since 2021. 🏺

And what can you look forward to?

⚔️ thrilling gladiator fights and gladiatorial games

🛡️ demonstrations of Roman battle formations, training and legionary equipment

🏛️ a ceremonial Roman army parade and triumphal march

👑 the arrival of a Roman general and period ceremonies

👗 a Roman fashion show and competition for the best costume

🎭 the puppet show Once Upon a Time in Pannonia – A Ring for Vinicius

🎶 a concert by the band Varkocs featuring music and instruments from ancient times

🏺 a craft village with blacksmithing, pottery, writing, herbalism and net-making workshops

🏹 an opportunity to try archery

🔍 the Roman Expedition – The Gladius Sword adventure game

🗡️ training for young legionaries and gladiators

🐴 horse riding for children

🎨 creative workshops – making Roman shields, ancient jewellery, amulets and medals

👕 screen-printing the Roman Games design on your own T-shirt

💎 demonstrations of Roman glass and glass bead making

🧱 building a Roman road and completing Roman builder challenges

😊 face painting

🏛️ guided tours of Ancient Gerulata

🚶 themed Date with the City walks for adults and children

♿ special tours for deaf, blind and visually impaired visitors

🗣️ expert lectures and discussions about Gerulata, Roman archaeological finds and Rusovce Manor House

⛺ demonstrations of the everyday lives of Roman soldiers

🛍️ craftspeople, local products and souvenirs

🍴 food zones

🍲 a free tasting of a traditional Roman dinner – while supplies last

Programme:

Post Office, Balkánska Street

10:00 – Official opening

10:20 – Introduction of the historical groups

Meet the groups that will bring Rusovce to life during the Roman Games and discover the historical periods and stories they represent.

10:40 – Opening ceremony and parade

The Roman army and performers will parade towards Ancient Gerulata. The festival will open with Roman rituals – adoratio, a greeting to the gods, and invocatio, an invocation of the deities and a prayer for a successful event.

11:30 – Puppet show: Once Upon a Time in Pannonia

The dreamer Vinicius longs for a heroic future and the heart of the beautiful Claudia. When he unexpectedly finds himself in a Roman legion, he sets out on the trail of a barbarian tribe to rescue his beloved and fulfil his heroic destiny.

Performed by: Peter Gärtner

12:00 – Discussion: Rome in Patince – discoveries in the Church of St Wendelin

Restoration research in the Roman Catholic Church of St Wendelin in Patince has revealed many unexpected discoveries. The discussion will also present the ongoing restoration and reconstruction work.

Speaker: Mgr. art. Juraj Puškár, Vice-President of the Chamber of Restorers

13:00 – Concert: Varkocs

What did music sound like in ancient times? Varkocs will transport you to the musical world of antiquity through prehistoric European pagan instruments and singing. The jaw harp, one of the oldest musical instruments, will also be featured.

14:00 – Ceremonial event: Arrival of the General

Following a successful campaign in the Marcomannic Wars, commander Publius Tarrutenius Paternus returns to Gerulata with his legionaries. Before Faustina Augusta, the wife of Marcus Aurelius, he will report on the outcome of the campaign and receive an honour bestowed upon him by the emperor.

14:40 – Roman fashion show: Best Costume Competition 👗🏛️

Come dressed in an outfit inspired by antiquity and enter the competition! You can register during the day at the information point. The winner will be selected by a jury.

16:00 – Triumphal march

The general who helped capture a Germanic chieftain will join the legionaries in a triumphal march and receive an honour for his victory.

17:00 – End of the stage programme

Hosted by Lukáš Jurko and Róbert Máťuš

Accompanying programme

From 10:00 to 17:00

🔎 Adventure game: Roman Expedition – The Gladius Sword

Follow the trail of the past, complete the tasks and, once you have successfully solved them, collect your reward at the Legionaries’ Mint.

Expert supervisor: PhDr. Jaroslava Schmidtová, Bratislava City Museum

🔨 Craft village

Herbalism, blacksmithing, writing, net-making and pottery workshops.

🏹 Archery challenge

Test your accuracy and find out whether you would have succeeded as an archer during the Roman Empire.

Ancient Gerulata – Gerulatská 7

11:00 – Training for young legionaries

An interactive children’s programme with the Teokratos Military History Club. Young legionaries will learn basic commands and how to use shields before helping to defend their unit against an attack by a mythical creature.

11:30 – Roman glass from Ancient Gerulata as part of the World Cultural Heritage: News from experimental archaeology

A lecture about Roman glassmaking in the territory of present-day Slovakia, the techniques used and the results of experimental production recently carried out at Ancient Gerulata. Presented by: Danica Staššíková–Štukovská and Jana Mellnerová Šuteková

12:30 – Gladiatorial games ⚔️

Enter the world of gladiators and discover their weapons and different fighting techniques. The audience will also become part of the action, and children will have an opportunity to test their skills. Performed by: Ars Gladiatorum and Magna Lacerta

13:00 – Discovery of a Roman camp dating from the Marcomannic Wars

Institute of Archaeology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Nitra: Šurany. A discussion with experts about one of the most important archaeological discoveries of recent years – a Roman field camp uncovered near Šurany.

Speakers: Assoc. Prof. PhDr. Matej Ruttkay, CSc., Mgr. Michal Cheben, PhD, and Mgr. Marek Vojteček, PhD

13:30 – Gerulata’s stone monuments and exceptional new discoveries made by the Bratislava City Museum

New knowledge and archaeological discoveries from Gerulata – from Roman stone monuments and a fragment of ceremonial armour depicting Mars to rare pottery from North Africa.

Presented by: Mgr. Ľudovít Mathédesz, PhD, and PhDr. Jaroslava Schmidtová

14:30 – What’s new beneath the manor house

What has been discovered beneath Rusovce Manor House over the past year? Erik Hrnčiarik, Dean of the Faculty of Arts at Trnava University and head of the archaeological research, will present the latest finds and discoveries together with Tomáš Kolon, an archaeologist at the Department of Classical Archaeology at Trnava University.

15:30 – Gladiatorial games ⚔️

The arena will once again come alive with a combat performance and gladiator fights held in honour of the arrival of General Publius Tarrutenius Paternus.

Performed by: Ars Gladiatorum and Magna Lacerta

16:00 – Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Danube Limes (Western Segment)

A discussion about the UNESCO World Heritage Site and its two archaeological locations in Slovakia – Gerulata in Bratislava-Rusovce and the Roman military camp in Iža.

Speakers: Anna Gondová and Erika Makarová, Monuments Board of the Slovak Republic

16:40 – Roman battle formation

Discover the discipline, training and battle formations of Roman legionaries.

Performed by: Legio X.Gem.Coh.II. and the Teokratos Military History Club

17:00 – End of the programme

Hosted by Martin Staňo

Accompanying programme

🛡️ 10:00 – 17:00 – Training for young gladiators

Test the agility, strength and courage required to enter the arena.

🏛️ 11:00, 12:00, 13:00, 14:00, 15:00 and 16:00 – Guided tours of Ancient Gerulata

Discover stories from the Roman frontier directly in the open-air exhibition. No registration is required – simply come to the site and join the tour.

🚶 11:00 – Date with the City: On the Edge of Two Worlds – Secrets, Power and Stories of Roman Gerulata

Discover life on the frontier of the Roman Empire, where the military world met trade and different cultures. Guide: Lea Szabóová. Capacity: 30 people. On-site booking opens 15 minutes before the tour. Meeting point: entrance gate in front of Gerulata.

13:00 – Date with the City for Deaf Visitors: Stories in Stone – The Visual Language of Roman Gerulata. The tour will be interpreted into Slovak Sign Language. Guide: Lea Szabóová. Registration is required due to limited capacity.

14:00 – Date with the City for Children: One Day in Ancient Rome

A playful tour exploring how children, soldiers, merchants and builders lived in ancient Rome. Guide: Margita Petríková. Capacity: 30 people. On-site booking opens 15 minutes before the tour. Meeting point: entrance gate in front of Gerulata.

🧑‍🦯 14:00 – Date with the City for Blind and Visually Impaired Visitors: The Emperor at the Edge of His Empire

A walk following in the footsteps of the legions and exploring the story of Gerulata. You will also learn about Marcus Aurelius and his philosophical work, part of which was written during a military campaign in the surrounding area. Guide: Katarína Blšták Čatlošová. Registration is required due to limited capacity.

🚶 15:30 – Date with the City: The Emperor at the Edge of His Empire

Discover life on the frontier of the Roman Empire and the story of Gerulata during this themed walk. Guide: Katarína Blšták Čatlošová. Capacity: 30 people. On-site booking opens 15 minutes before the tour. Meeting point: entrance gate in front of Gerulata.

Maďarská Street – SĽUK

🎓 11:00, 12:30 and 15:30 – What’s new beneath the manor house

A lecture by Erik Hrnčiarik about the latest archaeological finds and discoveries from the research conducted at Rusovce Manor House.

PLEASE NOTE: The 12:30 lecture will be specially adapted for children.

🕓 16:30 – 17:00 – Date with the City discussion: Ancient Gerulata – The Legacy of the Roman Empire in Slovakia

A discussion about Gerulata’s importance as part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire, the latest research and the future protection of this heritage.

Guests: PhDr. Jaroslava Schmidtová and Mgr. Ľudovít Mathédesz, PhD
Hosted by: Lea Szabóová

Accompanying programme

🎭 Face painting

🏛️ Latin quotations and dates with Monika Šurdová

🧱 Building a “Roman Road” construction set for children aged five and over

💍 Making ancient jewellery for children aged seven and over

🍽️ Food zone

Maďarská Street

🐴 10:00 – 17:00 – Horse riding for children

🔨 10:00 – 17:00 – Craft producers

Gerulatská 1026 – Fire Station

10:30 and 14:00 – The Gladius Sword: The Story of Its Material

A children’s workshop inspired by the Roman gladius sword discovered in Rusovce. Children will become archaeologists and create their own “archaeological discovery”. Registration is required.

10:00 – 17:00 – Screen-printing workshop

Create your own Roman Games design on a T-shirt or another item of clothing. Please bring your own white or light-coloured T-shirt or other garment.

10:00 – 17:00 – Roman Builder Challenges and Protective Amulet

Three Roman challenges – building a column, solving Roman numerals and crossing a river. After completing them, children can finish decorating their own wooden protective amulet. Paid creative workshops will also be available.

10:00 – 17:00 – Making shields for Roman legionaries

Make your own Roman shield and discover the world of the legionaries through handmade bows, crossbows, swords and shields.

10:00 – 17:00 – Roman glass in Gerulata: Stories, demonstrations and replicas

Glassmaking demonstrations, replicas, glass bead production and a quiz about Roman glass.

Park on Irkutská Street

10:00 – 17:00 – The everyday lives of Roman soldiers

Step inside a Roman camp and discover the legionaries’ equipment, food, everyday life and preparation for military service.

🍽️ 17:00 – 18:00 – Roman dinner

Taste traditional Roman cuisine and discover what legionaries ate in a Roman military camp. ✨ Food will be served free of charge while supplies last.

🏛️ ONE DAY. SEVERAL LOCATIONS. THOUSANDS OF YEARS OF HISTORY.

Come to Rusovce and experience antiquity first-hand – with legionaries, gladiators, craftspeople, archaeologists, musicians and a programme for children.

We look forward to seeing you!

Location: Rusovce
Date: Saturday, 26 September 2026
Time: From 10:00
Admission: Free

Here you can find all our tips for EVENTS IN BRATISLAVA.