Portus Illicitanus avenue Roman site, Roman archaeological site in Santa Pola, Spain.
Portus Ilicitanus is the Roman port site of the colony of Ilici, now in Santa Pola. Excavations on Avinguda Portus Ilicitanus between 1982 and 1986 uncovered houses and warehouses linked to port trade, dated from the reign of Augustus to the 4th century. Other remains include a 4th-century fish-salting complex in the Les Salines area and a large suburban villa with polychrome geometric mosaics in the Parc del Palmeral.
The port developed in early antiquity as a trading center for the Roman colony of Ilici and remained active for centuries. It reached its greatest importance from the 1st century BCE until the 5th century CE, before the settlement gradually declined.
The name refers to the ancient port city and its role as a trading hub. The visible remains today show how merchants and craftspeople lived and worked here, with traces of their daily activities preserved in walls and objects.
The site has regular visiting hours and informative panels at key structures that explain their original function. The paths are mostly ground-level, making it easy to walk through the different areas on foot.
The site takes its name from the avenue where housing and port warehouses were documented between 1982 and 1986, in campaigns covering a span from the reign of Augustus to the 4th century. The excavated structures themselves are mostly from the 4th century, so the port did not feel the crisis of the 3rd century; decline came in the 5th.
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