Roman villa of Vilares

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Roman ruins of Vilares
Location Lisbon, Greater Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal
Coordinates 38°43′49.38″N9°26′37.81″W / 38.7303833°N 9.4438361°W / 38.7303833; -9.4438361 Coordinates: 38°43′49.38″N9°26′37.81″W / 38.7303833°N 9.4438361°W / 38.7303833; -9.4438361
Altitude93 m (305 ft)
Type Ruins
Length21.46 m (70.4 ft)
Width178.46 m (585.5 ft)
Site notes
Archaeologistsunknown
OwnershipPortuguese Republic
Public accessPrivate Rua de Gil Eanes, Pracete Luís de Camões

The Roman ruins of Vilares (Portuguese : Ruinas romanas de Vilares) is an archaeological excavation in the civil parish of Alcabideche, municipality of Cascais, discovered in the early part of the 21st century on a site designated for residential development. The site identified remnants that implied a necropolis and remains of a Roman villa (imbrices and terra sigillata), but suggested occupation since the Iron Age until Moorish intervention.

Portuguese language Romance language that originated in Portugal

Portuguese is a Western Romance language originating in the Iberian Peninsula. It is the sole official language of Portugal, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Angola, and São Tomé and Príncipe. It also has co-official language status in East Timor, Equatorial Guinea and Macau in China. As the result of expansion during colonial times, a cultural presence of Portuguese and Portuguese creole speakers are also found in Goa, Daman and Diu in India; in Batticaloa on the east coast of Sri Lanka; in the Indonesian island of Flores; in the Malacca state of Malaysia; and the ABC islands in the Caribbean where Papiamento is spoken, while Cape Verdean Creole is the most widely spoken Portuguese-based Creole. A Portuguese-speaking person or nation may be referred to as "Lusophone" in both English and Portuguese.

Alcabideche Civil parish in Lisbon, Portugal

Alcabideche is a parish located in the Portuguese municipality of Cascais. The population in 2011 was 42,162, in an area of 39.77 km².

Necropolis large ancient cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments

A necropolis is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek νεκρόπολις nekropolis, literally meaning "city of the dead".

Contents

History

Although dates are difficult to ascertain, it is likely the area on which these ruins are located were systematically occupied by Iron Age, Roman and Moorish settlements, during their waves of occupation starting in the 1st century. [1] [2]

The first investigation into this area occurred between 2000 and 2001, under the supervision of José d'Encarnação, Guilhereme de Jesus, João Pedro Marcelino Cabral and Maria de Lurdes Nieuwendam. [1]

Between May–August 2007, the archaeological dig continued, with archaeologists accompanying the construction projects, including the digging of channels for sanitation and water pipes. [1] This intervention continued into 2008; while the surrounding terrains were cleared for construction, the site was cleaned and a registry of all the archaeological artifacts was compiled. [1]

Between November 2007 and April 2008, excavations were completed to safeguard the terrains adjacent to the archaeological site, owing to the intended construction of new residential homes in the area. [1]

Architecture

During the excavation the group unearthed vestiges of Roman-era structures including buildings and tombs, as well as vestiges of Islamic silos, which are also discovered from the main site. [1] [2]

Diagnostic analysis was completed in an area of 6 km², revealing numerous and varied remnants. Ten metres from the villa's ruins a group of five structures in dry masonry (60 centimetres thick), that were attributed to the Roman period, and although in ruins, represented two former compartments. [1] Within these spaces the archaeologists unearthed a large concentration of ceramics. Farther to the south of the site, at about a distance of 50 metres, the team also discovered 28 structures, that were associated with Moorish occupation. [1] [2] More than 150 metres south of the villa site, the explorers were able to identify six masonry structures that belong to the Roman era construction, occupying an area of 400 m². [1] In some areas, there were also overturned rocks that could have been a part of the structures already identified. [1]

In its totality, the artifacts unearthed were ceramic, and includes examples of terra sigillata and thin walls. [1] [2] Although a majority of these remnants are difficult to date, some pieces are clearly from the Iron Age (including amphora), Roman occupation and Moorish interventions. [1]

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References

Notes
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Nieuwendam, Maria de Lurdes; Santos, Raquel (December 2008), "Villa Romana de Vilares, Cascais: trabalhos arqueológicos em 2007-2008", Al-Madan (in Portuguese) (16) (Série 2 ed.), pp. 2–3
  2. 1 2 3 4 IGESPAR, ed. (2011), Vilares (in Portuguese), Lisbon, Portugal: IGESPAR - Instituto Gestão do Patrimonio Arquitectónico e Arqueológico, retrieved 8 November 2011
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