Tacitus mentions Mattium in his
Annals, when he describes the Roman campaign against the Chatti under the command of
Germanicus in 15 AD. According to him the Roman army destroyed the
caput gentis Mattium, directly after it crossed the river
Adrana (
Eder). Aside from Tacitus' description placing Mattium north of the Eder, there is also some linguistic analysis suggesting that the names of the villages
Maden and
Metze and the brook
Matzoff might be derived from Mattium and hence Mattium might be located in their neighbourhood. However, so far there are no archeological findings which would provide an exact location and confirm the description of Tacitus or the linguistic analysis. The Altenburg, an ancient fortified site, in the same neighbourhood, was often equated with Mattium in older literature. However, more recent research, in particular the dating of archeological artefacts from the site, has concluded that the site was already abandoned decades before the Roman troops destroyed Mattium. Therefore, the Altenburg is not considered a suitable candidate for Mattium anymore. The term
caput gentis being used by Tacitus may not only denote a capital in the sense of a single large fortified settlement, but it could also refer to a central place of worship. In the latter case it is conceivable that Mattium comprised a larger area consisting of various ritual sites and settlements connected to them rather than being a single central settlement. ==Mattiacum==