Italica: A Side of Sevilla Rarely Considered

Sevilla isn't necessarily the most modern city in Spain- there aren't any skyscrapers or booming centers of business in the city, but old definitely wouldn't be the word that comes to mind while walking through its streets. However just a twenty minute car ride outside the city lies a beautiful relic of Sevilla's ancient history- the ruins of the Roman city of Italica. In 200 BC, the Romans built Italica as a kind of retirement community for soldiers to enjoy the remainder of their days after they had completed enough time in battle. They chose the location for mainly its climate- the warmth was good for the soldiers to relax and recuperate, and also the scenery was similar to that of Italy so it felt like home for the soldiers. Later the city would also become populated by wealthy Italians who wanted to get away from Rome.

I was so shocked to see how little was left of the city. When someone says "ruins" I just think of old stone buildings that are crumbling, but these truly were just merely ruins. What used to be 3-4 story high apartment buildings were now foundations no more than a foot high.

The Roman city was highly sophisticated, having its own underground sewage system with private bathrooms in nearly every house. There were also gyms or areas for sports on the ground floors of many of the apartment buildings. Beautiful mosaics tiled the floors in what used to be common bath areas, such as this one:

About 400 years after the city was built, there was an arena that was built outside of the walls of the city. This arena was similar in function and design to the Coliseum in Rome. It was used for animal and gladiator fights, among other forms of entertainment. The arena also had an underground passage under the main floor of the arena where animals were kept before being brought out into the main floor for show. This underground passage could be covered with wooden planks during the shows. Originally, the arena had three tiers, although weather and time had worn down the arena so that really only the first tier of seating is left. The different tiers were for separating classes of attendees, as well as women and children. 

While much of Italica has been uncovered, there are still fields surrounding the city that have yet to be investigated. The true size of Italica is still unknown for this reason, and may not ever be uncovered. Is there any further reason to just uncover more of the same thing? This is the reasoning many have used to discontinue their funding to the excavation of Italica. Who knows though- the best part of the ancient city may still lie undiscovered in the fields outside of Sevilla.