Prehistoric and archaeological sites in Croatia
Roman Forum
Roman Forum of Zadar is the largest on the eastern side of the Adriatic sea, founded by the first Roman Emperor Augustus, as shown by two stone inscriptions about its completion dating from the 3rd century. Ancient Zadar (or Iadera as the Romans would say) was a Roman colony from 48BC until the disintegration of the Roman empire in the 5th century. After a violent earthquake in the 6th century, the buildings surroundin ...
Founded: 1st century AD |
Location:
Zadar, Croatia
Pula Arena
The Pula Arena is the only remaining Roman amphitheatre to have four side towers and with all three Roman architectural orders entirely preserved. It is among the six largest surviving Roman arenas in the World. A rare example among the 200 surviving Roman amphitheatres, it is also the best preserved ancient monument in Croatia. The Arena was built between 27 BC and 68 AD, as the city of Pula became a regional centre of ...
Founded: 27 BC - 68 AD |
Location:
Pula, Croatia
Arch of the Sergii
Arch of the Sergii is an Ancient Roman triumphal arch located in Pula, Croatia. The arch commemorates three brothers of the Sergii family, specifically Lucius Sergius Lepidus, a tribune serving in the twenty-ninth legion that participated in the Battle of Actium and disbanded in 27 BC . This suggests an approximate date of construction to 29-27 BC. The arch stood behind the original naval gate of the early Roman colony. T ...
Founded: 29-27 BC |
Location:
Pula, Croatia
Pula Roman Theatre
The smaller Roman Theatre of Pula from the 1st century AD was erected on the slope underneath the Venetian fortress. The area was divided into the stage and the proscene where the acting took place, the orchestra and the viewing area or the cavea. The theatre lied on the hill slope, which was the characteristic of Greek theatres. Only the stage foundations and a part of the semi-circular viewing area of the Small Roman Th ...
Founded: 0-100 AD |
Location:
Pula, Croatia
Temple of Augustus
The Temple of Augustus is a well-preserved Roman temple in the city of Pula. Dedicated to the first Roman emperor, Augustus, it was probably built during the emperor"s lifetime at some point between 27 BC and his death in AD 14. It was built on a podium with a tetrastyle prostyle porch of Corinthian columns and measures about 8 by 17.3 m, and 14 m high. The richly decorated frieze is similar to that of a somewhat lar ...
Founded: 27 BCE - 14 AD |
Location:
Pula, Croatia
Temple of Neptune
The Temple of Neptune was erected on the Poreč forum in the 1st century. It is thought to be the biggest in Istria, although only a portion of its walls and the foundations have been preserved. During the Antiquity, Poreč as well as all Roman towns, had a forum, the main town square known today as Marafor, and a Capitoline temple facing it. It was believed that the temple was dedicated to God Mars in light of interpret ...
Founded: 0-100 AD |
Location:
Poreč, Croatia
Hercules Gate
Hercules Gate is the oldest standing Roman monument in Pula, dating from the 1st century BC.
Founded: 100-0 BCE |
Location:
Pula, Croatia
Salona Amphitheatre
At the northwest end of Salona’s town limits, subsequently fortified, there is an amphitheatre, which forms part of the town defence system. Its remains are comparatively well-preserved, showing the benefits of the well known reconstruction made by the Danish archaeologist Ejnar Dyggve. Dyggve considers that the amphitheatre was designed by Roman architects who performed similar tasks elsewhere too, and that it was b ...
Founded: 2nd century AD |
Location:
Solin, Croatia
Salona
Salona was an ancient city and the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia. The first mention of the name Salon originates about 7th century BC as an Illyrian settlement. It is the largest archaeological park in Croatia, whose size is attested by the monumental ramparts with towers and gates, a forum with temples, an amphitheater and cemeteries with Salonian martyrs (Manastirine, Kapljuč, Marusinac). Salona was a town ...
Founded: 7th century BCE |
Location:
Solin, Croatia
Lubenice
Lubenice is an ancient fort city on the island of Cres that was founded approximately 4000 years ago on top of a 380 m high ridge that overlooks the Adriatic Sea. It is a small local center that comprises forty buildings and seven permanent inhabitants. Buildings in the city are mainly constructed out of the same material as the surrounding cliffs, a lesser part dates back to a former settlement of ancient Romans. There a ...
Founded: 2000 BCE |
Location:
Cres, Croatia
Roman Temple of Nin
Remains of the Roman temple from the 1st century AD in the time of the Roman emperor Vespasian. It was the largest Roman temple on the east side of the Adriatic sea with the dimensions of 33 meters in length and 23.5m in width. It is located in the very center of Nin.
Founded: 1st century AD |
Location:
Nin, Croatia
Gradina
Among the remains of the Solin buildings, of particular interest is the complex known as Gradina (Hill-Fort), next to the very river and the Roman town’s eastern walls. A church of an unusual ground plan, built over the Roman époque remains, is today situated within a medieval fortress. This was built, according to some authors, by the Split archbishop Ugolino de Mala Branca (1349-1388) to protect the people of Split f ...
Founded: 14th century |
Location:
Solin, Croatia
Canjevo
Čanjevo hill fort origins are unknown but it may have exist already in the 3000-2000 BCE. There was a medieval castle which was later converted to the border control fort. It was already demolished or abandoned in the 19th century.
Founded: 3000 BCE |
Location:
Čanjevo, Croatia
Veliki Brijun Roman Villa
On the western coast of Brijuni, along Verige Bay, stands a magnificent Roman villa rustica. Its construction began in the 1st century BC, and it achieved its greatest splendor in the 1st century AD. Certain parts of the villa were used until the 6th century. It consisted of several buildings for various purposes situated at carefully chosen sites in different parts of the bay. On the southern side of the bay stood a su ...
Founded: 100-0 BCE |
Location:
Pula, Croatia
Vizula
Vižula is an archaeological site near Medulin, confirmed to be populated from the Neolithic to the Early Middle Ages. Remains of a Neolithic settlement were found including wicker cottages glued together by soil and mud, as well as parts of the ceramics and some dishes. However, the most significant is the Roman villa, which has undergone systematic research, dating back to the 1st and the 2nd centuries. It was found tha ...
Founded: 0-100 AD |
Location:
Medulin, Croatia
Burnum
Burnum was a Roman Legion camp and town. It is located 2.5 km north of Kistanje. The remains include a praetorium, the foundations of several rooms, the amphitheatre and the aqueduct. It is assumed that Burnum originates from the year 33 BC, but it is more likely that it was established a few decades later. Several Roman legions were located there in succession, and the first one was Legio XX Valeria Victrix from the beg ...
Founded: 1st century BCE |
Location:
Kistanje, Croatia
Fulfinum Mirine
The Fulfinum Mirine basilica has been preserved up to the roof level. It is the only preserved sacral building of this type not only on the island of Krk, but on the entire Croatian Littoral. The construction of this church on the remains of the Roman town of Fulfinum marked the beginning of a new Christian town. However, its secrets are yet to be discovered by experts. Local tradition associates this church with the Gla ...
Founded: 7th century |
Location:
Omišalj, Croatia
Velika and Mala Crljivica
The necropolis Velika and Mala Crljivica is located in the village of Cista Velika along the main Trilj-Imotski road in a length of 200 meters. South of the so called Velika Crljivica, the eastern part of the site, lays a karst sinkhole with seven wells constructed in the Middle Ages. 102 stećci of all basic types have been preserved: slabs, chests and gabled roof tombstones. Decorative motifs are the following: crosses ...
Founded: 14th century |
Location:
Cista Provo, Croatia
Brijuni Kastrum
The richest site by its strata on the Brijuni stretches on an area somewhat greater than 1 hectare. Finds from the period of the Roman Republic and Empire, Late Antiquity, Eastern Goths, Byzantium, Carolingian period and Venice testify to the long time settlement. The first villa in Dobrika Bay was built in the 1st century BC. During Augustus" rule, partly on the site of the first villa, a new villa rustica was er ...
Founded: 100-0 BCE |
Location:
Pula, Croatia
Aqueduct of Diocletian
The Aqueduct of Diocletian is an ancient Roman aqueduct near Split, constructed during the Roman Empire to supply water to the palace of the emperor Diocletian. The Aqueduct of Diocletian was constructed between the end of 3rd and beginning of the 4th century AD, at the same time as the palace. The aqueduct took water from the river Jadro, 9 kilometres northeast of Diocletian"s Palace, today Split"s city centr ...
Founded: 4th century AD |
Location:
Split, Croatia