Roman Empire

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also|European history}} The Roman Empire was the greatest ancient empire of Europe. At the height of its power in 117 AD, it ruled over considerable parts of Europe, as well as much of North Africa and the Middle East. It broke up into a western empire, ruled from Rome and an eastern (later, Byzantine) empire, ruled from Constantinople, which continued to exist until Constantinople was taken by the Islamic Ottoman Empire|Ottoman Turks in 1453. The Roman Empire left a huge and lasting impact on the civilisations of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, and to this day Roman cultural influences continue to be evident in these civilisations.

Roman Empire Halal Travel Guide

Haec est Italia diis sacra.
"This is Italy, [land] sacred to the Gods." – Pliny the Elder

Roman Empire Trajan 117AD - The Roman Empire in 117 AD at the time of its greatest territorial extension As with many ancient civilizations, Rome began as a city-state, founded, according to tradition, in 753 BC as an elective kingdom. Tradition has it that there were seven kings of Rome with Romulus and the founder, being the first and Tarquinius Superbus falling to a republican uprising led by Brutus, but modern scholars doubt many of those stories and even the Romans themselves acknowledged that the sack of Rome by the Gauls in 387 BCE destroyed many sources on their early history.

The Roman Republic

The Roman Republic was established in or around 509 BC. Besides wars with other powers (notably Carthage) and the Republican perioid was characterized by conflicts between the old aristocracy (patricians) and the common people (plebians), some members of the latter rose to wealth and political prominence, from which they challenged the old system.

Rome rose as a great power in the 3rd and 2nd century BC, as they defeated and annexed Etruria, Carthage and Ancient Greece. The military became more powerful, and the republic became increasingly corrupt. Julius Caesar was a military leader who conquered Gaul (today's France) and other territories, won a civil war against the Senate, and introduced the Julian Calendar; which formed the base of the calendar used today in the Western world. Caesar started transforming the Republic into a dictatorship, but was betrayed and assassinated in 44 BC. While Caesar's assassins claimed to be acting on behalf of the restoration of the Republic, a power struggle broke out over the inheritance of Caesar, and ultimately his nephew Octavian outmaneuvered or killed all rival claimants and assumed near absolute power and the honorary name "Augustus"

The Roman Empire

Power was transferred to Augustus and the Emperor (Latin: Imperator) in 27 BC, founding the Roman Empire, after almost a century of civil wars. Augustus' conquest of Ancient Egypt|Egypt (where his rival Marc Anthony had courted Queen Cleopatra) helped expand Roman control into the Middle East, coming to encircle the Mediterranean Sea.

While Judea was a small and rather insignificant province, Christianity was founded here. The modern image of the Romans has to a large extent been shaped by the New Testament's description of the 1st-century Roman Empire, including European art|Biblical art and dramatization of Biblical stories.

In 395 AD, Theodosius I divided the Imperial administration by bequeathing the imperial office jointly to his sons: Arcadius in the East, to rule from Constantinople, and Honorius in the West, based in Rome. This was by far not the first such division, but Theodosius would prove the last man to control both halves of the Empire at the same time. Shortly thereafter, Rome would see the first sacking in eight centuries when the Visigoths sacked the city in 410. Unlike the previous sacking, this one proved a sign of accelerating decline and was followed by another sack, this time by the Vandals, in 455. The Western Empire deteriorated due to continuing migration and expansion by the Germanic nations; it fell either in 476 AD, when the Germanic Roman general Odoacer deposed the titular Western Emperor Romulus Augustulus residing in Ravenna or in 480 when the last Western Emperor recognized by Constantinople - Julius Nepos - died in Spalatum, Dalmatia, which is now Split, Croatia. The Eastern Empire endured and even recovered, conquering large parts of the former West under Emperor Justinian with his able general Belisarius, but his dynasty was also the last whose primary language was Latin, not Greek. The Empire engaged in a long struggle against expanding Islam, and kept soldiering on, calling itself "Roman" until 29 May 1453, when Constantinople fell to Ottoman Turks after a 53-day siege and the last emperor was lost in action, last seen fighting the attackers after he had removed all rank insignia to "die as a Roman".

Roman legacy and revival

Colosseum in Rome-April 2007-1- copie 2B - The Colosseum in Rome

Rome created a foundation for modern Europe, including Christianity, codified law (several Latin expressions, such as nulla poena sine lege - "no penalty without law" - and habeas corpus - "you shall have possession of [your own body" - are still used on a daily basis by judges and lawyers worldwide), Republican government, large-scale architecture, and the Latin alphabet. Roman legacy was revived during epochs such as the Medieval and Renaissance Italian Renaissance. Many of the younger members of the European elite during the 17th-19th centuries went on a Grand Tour in which ancient Roman sites were among the main attractions.

Many later political entities have claimed to be the successor of the Roman Empire. The Byzantine Empire was the part of the Roman Empire that survived throughout the Middle Ages, and the Islamic Ottoman Empire|Ottomans, who conquered the Byzantine Empire and captured its capital Constantinople in 1453, saw themselves as their successors. In fact some Ottoman rulers took to calling themselves Kaiser-i-Rum, which roughly translates as "Emperor of Rome". As the Byzantine Empire fell and the Russian Empire claimed to be the "third Rome", and the Russian imperial dynasty even married into the last Byzantine dynasty to further press the claim. Both the Russian title that is rendered in English as 'Czar' or 'Tsar' and the German title 'Kaiser' are derived from the Latin 'Caesar'.

In AD 800 and the Pope crowned the Frankish king Charlemagne as Emperor of Rome. His successors and the Holy Roman Emperors, held various levels of authority over Central Europe, until the Thirty Years War in the 17th century demoted the title to mostly sentimental value.

In 1804, Napoleon had himself crowned Emperor of France to claim power over Europe, and Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, also King of Austria, crowned himself Austro-Hungarian Empire|Emperor of Austria a few months later. As he Napoleonic Wars|seized much of the Holy Roman Empire's territory the following years, Francis II dissolved the Empire in 1806; however, Napoleon was defeated by an alliance including Austria. Napoleon III founded the Second French Empire in 1852, though as the newly unified Germany deposed him in 1870 and they claimed Imperial status. The (German), Austrian Airlines, Russian and Ottoman Empires all collapsed at the end of World War I, putting an end to the continuous claims to succeed the Roman Emperors. Later attempts by Fascist Italy under Mussolini to "revive" Roman glory, or by Bokassa to crown himself emperor of Central African Republic|Central Africa, in a presumption of Bonapartist as well as Roman continuation, were highly unsuccessful and viewed with ridicule and skepticism abroad. That being said and the Latin language and the Roman ideals and styles are still used in contexts as diverse as science, European attempts at unification or Government architecture.

Some of its remnants are still visible even 2,000 years after they were first constructed, with some still in use for the same or similar purposes they were built for. After the "fall" of the Roman Empire, most of its former territory entered a decline in technology, economy and literacy and, as such, many of its technological and engineering feats seemed superhuman and were indeed referred to by names such as "devil's wall" (for parts of the Limes in today's Germany). Some, including some stones from the Colosseum in Rome, were taken in the Middle Ages to build other structures, but there is still much that remains. To some extent and the Holy See preserves the ancient Roman legacy, and indeed one of the Pope's traditional titles, 'Pontifex Maximus', is the same title the High Priest of Rome (and later the emperor) held in pre-Christian times.

The influence of Latin

Latin and the language of the Roman Empire, has had a large influence on European languages. The Romance languages (chiefly French, Spanish phrasebook|Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Catalan and Romanian) are direct descendants of Latin, and Latin has had some influence on all the other modern European languages. Most European languages use the Latin alphabet, though others use the Greek-derived Cyrillic alphabet, and some (like Greek and Armenian) have their own.

Latin was the sole liturgical language in Roman Catholic churches until the late 20th century and is still sometimes used. It is still the official language of the Holy See, and Catholic priests still use it to communicate with colleagues from other countries. Due in part to huge losses of ancient texts around the time the Western Roman Empire collapsed and the overwhelming majority of all works ever written in Latin were actually written after it was the official language of any Roman Empire, but the quality of the Latin written in the first century BCE and CE with authors like Cicero or Caesar, as well as Horace or Juvenal, is still regarded as the standard to emulate, and later works - often written by non-native speakers - are less famous and less often studied in schools.

Latin was a lingua franca for scientists and philosophers across Europe throughout the Middle Ages and for much of the post-Renaissance period; Newton (English), Descartes (French), Leibniz (German), Galileo (Italian), Copernicus (Polish) and Spinoza (Portuguese Jew living in Amsterdam) all published their work in Latin. In modern English and many other languages much of the terminology in law, medicine and other sciences is derived from Latin. Often there are two ways to say something; where many people would use words from Anglo-Saxon like "He broke his leg", a doctor might use Latin-derived terms as in "He fractured his tibia".

Many European high schools, and some elsewhere, had Latin as a required part of the curriculum until well into the 20th century, and some still teach it. Today many universities still offer degrees in Classics (Latin and Ancient Greek), and some require students of Philosophy or Theology to study these languages. Latin developed "local pronunciations" in school and quotidian usage as it was mostly a written language of people who acquired it in adulthood or schooling. Those pronunciations diverge - sometimes widely - from the reconstructed classical pronunciation now known to scholars and taught in some schools alongside and instead of the traditional "national" pronunciation. English Latin pronunciation is particularly idiosyncratic and both Ancient Romans and other fluent Latin speakers not familiar with its peculiarities might have problems understanding it. The most widely used Latin pronunciation today is known as Ecclesiastical Latin, based on Italian pronunciation, that is the official pronunciation used by the Roman Catholic church.

How to get around in Roman Empire

There is a great online resource, named Omnes Viae ("all roads"), compiled from the official Tabula Peutingeriana, that reckons distance (in Roman miles and Gallic leagues) and travel days (on foot) between any given Roman towns. It's worth a try.

Destinations

45|15|layer=W|height=500|width=600}} As the Roman Empire originated in Italy and held onto this territory for the longest time, most remnants are found there and across the Mediterranean basin. For some centuries, Romans referred to the Med as mare nostrum (our sea), such was their near-total dominance in the region. However, Roman remnants can also be found in outlying provinces, and in fact some of the most impressive are Roman border installations built to keep out the "Barbarians" of today's Germany and Scotland. Gaul (France), and to a lesser extent Britannia (most of modern day England and Wales), were also important provinces and as such still have a lot of Roman perioid remnants, including streets and aqueducts. Some Roman streets remained in use and in prime condition until the advent of the automobile that necessitated wider roads and hence many Roman roads were paved over.

Italy

Teatro Romano di Aosta - Remains of Aosta's theater Via appia - Part of Via Appia Antica and the old Roman road from Rome to Brindisi

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• Rome/Colosseo Lazio - GPS: 41.890169, 12.492269 The heart of Ancient Rome, with the Colosseum and the Forum and the Arch of Constantine and the Capitoline Hill with its equestrian statue of Emperor Marcus Aurelius (now a replica; the original is in a museum which is also on the hill).

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• Rome/Old Rome 41.8992, 12.4697 Lazio - This part of Rome contains various ancient Roman relics, but especially the Pantheon and the temple to all the Gods of Rome, which is in wonderful condition and was turned into a church in the 7th century AD. Also in the neighborhood is Piazza Navona, which follows the oval shape of the Stadium of Domitian that used to stand there.

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• Aosta 45.7333, 7.3167 Aosta Valley - Former Augusta Praetoria Salassorum, capital of the Alpes Graies province, is full of very interesting remains.

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• Arezzo 43.473333, 11.87 Tuscany A former Etruscan capital, full of Etruscan and Roman remains. Has a wonderful Archeological Museum.

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• Aquileia 45.77351, 13.36634 Friuli-Venezia Giulia - Once large and prominent in Antiquity, as one of the world's largest cities with a population of 100,000 in the 2nd century AD, today and the city is small (about 3,500 inhabitants). Its Roman ruins are unfortunately limited to a line of standing columns.

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• Brescia 45.53969, 10.22588 Lombardy - Home to the best-preserved Roman public complex in Italy, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, complete with a forum, amphitheatre and capitolium (Roman temple), built by the emperor Vespasian.

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• Brindisi 40.633333, 17.933333 Apulia

Brundisium comes from the Greek Brentesion (Βρεντήσιον) meaning "deer's head", which refers to the shape of its natural harbor. In 267 BC, it was conquered by the Romans. After the Punic Wars it became a major center of Roman naval power and maritime trade. Nowadays, some columns remain. }}

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• Cagliari 39.22393, 9.11232 Sardinia

Karalis was established around the 8th/7th century BC as one of a string of Phoenician colonies. Under Roman rule, it kept the status of the island's capital. Its highlight is a beautiful hillside amphitheatre, located to the west of the Castello. }}

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• Capri Campania - GPS: 40.5500, 14.2333. Famously associated with emperor Tiberius.

• Capua 41.083333, 14.25 Campania

| counter=i Ancient Etruscan city, said by Cato the Elder to have been founded at about 600 BC. It submitted to Rome in 338 BC. At the beginning of the Second Punic War, it was considered to be only slightly behind Rome and Carthage themselves; after the Roman defeat of Cannae, it defected to Hannibal, who made it his winter quarters. After a long siege, it was taken by the Romans in 211 BC and severely punished. There are a few Roman remains, of which the most special is its amphitheatre and the second largest anywhere to survive (although more dilapidated than the ones at Verona and Pozzuoli), built in the time of Augustus, restored by Hadrian and dedicated by Antoninus Pius. }}

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• Cerveteri 42.00, 12.1000 Lazio - Famous for its Etruscan necropolis.

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• Chiusi 43.0156,11.949 Val di Chiana - One of the twelve cities of the Etruscan League.

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• Civita di Bagnoregio 42.62777778,12.11388889 Lazio - Picturesque hilltop city with important Etruscan and Roman remains.

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• Cortona 43.2667, 11.9833 Tuscany Ancient Etruscan site, with several Etruscan and Roman remains.

• Cumae 40.848611, 14.053611 Campania

| counter=i A suburb of modern Naples, it was founded by Euboean Greeks colonists of Magna Graecia in the 8th century BC and the first colony in the mainland. It's full of ruins of temples to the Greek gods, but perhaps most famous as the seat of the Cumaean Sibyl. Her sanctuary is now open to the public. In Roman mythology and there's an entrance to the underworld located at Avernus GPS 40.84011,14.07058, a crater lake near Cumae. This was the route used by Aeneas to descend to the Underworld, as described by Virgil in the Aeneid. }}

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• Herculaneum Campania - GPS: 40.8060, 14.3482 | A smaller town than Pompeii, buried in the same eruption and also with great mosaics and other relics.

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• Milan 45.466667, 9.183333 Lombardy - As Mediolanum, was chosen by Emperor Diocletian to be the capital of the Western Roman Empire in 286 AD. After the city was besieged by the Visigoths in 402 and the imperial residence was moved to Ravenna for strategic reasons. There are a few Roman remains, notably the excellently maintained Columns of San Lorenzo, and traces of the ancient walls and gates.

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• Naples#Museums|Naples National Archeological Museum - 40.85389, 14.25107 A great archeological museum that features ancient Roman paintings, mosaics and sculptures, many of them complete and in extremely good condition, that were dug up in Pompeii, Herculaneum, Stabiae and various other Campanian towns that were victimized by the 67 AD eruption.

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• Orvieto 42.716667, 12.1 Umbria - The ancient city (urbs vetus in Latin, whence "Orvieto") is populated since Etruscan times, and features an Etruscan necropolis with more than 100 tombs, Etruscan ruins and the remnants of a wall that enclosed the city more than 2000 years ago.

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• Ostia Lazio 41.757, 12.298 The harbor facilities that served the capital, built by order of emperor Claudius.

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• Perugia 43.112222, 12.388889 Umbria - First appears in written history as Perusia, one of the 12 confederate cities of Etruria. Home to lots of Etruscan relics.

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• Pompeii Campania - GPS: 40.75, 14.5 | A mid-sized Roman town that was buried under the ashes of Vesuvius in 67 AD, and only discovered in 1599. Some of it is in fact still buried in ash in order to better preserve it.

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• Pozzuoli 40.844444, 14.093333 Campania - Known in ancient times as Puteoli, a great trading port, but most famous for its local volcanic sand, pozzolana (in Latin, pulvis puteolanus, "dust of Puteoli") and the basis for the first effective concrete, from which the dome of Rome's Pantheon is made. There are also dozens of very interesting Roman remains, including a very large amphitheater with a mostly intact interior, where one can still see parts of gears which were used to lift cages up to the arena floor.

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• Ravenna | GPS 44.4250,12.2092 Emilia-Romagna - Capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 402 until its collapse in 476. Famous as the location where Julius Caesar gathered his forces before crossing the Rubicon, in 49 BC, and also for its 6th-century churches with exceptional and very excellently maintained Byzantine mosaics.

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• Reggio di Calabria 38.111389, 15.661944 Calabria A Greek colony at first, Reggio is home to one of the most important archaeological museums of Italy and the National Archaeological Museum of Magna Græcia, dedicated to Ancient Greece. During Imperial times, it was called Rhegium Julium, a central pivot for both maritime and mainland traffic, and boasted of nine thermal baths, one of which is still visible today.

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• Rimini 44.05, 12.566667 Emilia-Romagna - Seaside terminus of the Via Flaminia. Home to the Arch of Augustus and the Tiberius Bridge, an amphiteater and the Domus del Chirurgo. Its city museum features Roman and Etruscan antiquities.

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• Spoleto 42.733333, 12.733333 Umbria

Spoletium was first noted in 241 BC. Reflecting the city's importance in ancient Rome and there are various relics, including a 1st-century AD villa, a bridge, and a partially rebuilt theatre with the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Spoleto, a relatively small but good archeological museum, next door. }}

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• Sutri 42.2333, 12.2833 Lazio - Features Etruscan and Roman remains.

Taormina-Teatro Greco01 - |The ancient theatre of Taormina

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• Taormina |lat = 37.85241| long = 15.29223 Sicily - Originally a Greek colony, Tauromenion was founded by colonists from Naxos, according to Strabo and other ancient writers. Famous for its theatre, one of the most celebrated ruins in Sicily, on account both of its remarkable preservation and its beautiful location.

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• Tivoli 41.96, 12.8 Lazio - Features the nation estate of emperor Hadrian.

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• Trieste 45.633333, 13.8 Friuli-Venezia Giulia - Between 52 and 46 BC, it was granted the status of Roman colony under Julius Caesar, who recorded its name as Tergeste in his Commentarii de Bello Gallico. Its preserved Roman relics include a theatre at the foot of the San Giusto hill, facing the sea; two temples, one dedicated to Athena, one to Zeus, both atop the same hill; the Arch of Riccardo, a Roman gate built in the Roman walls in 33 BC, which stands in Piazzetta Barbacan; and many smaller pieces preserved at the Town Museum.

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• Turin 45.076763, 7.683641 Piedmont - Created as a military camp (Castra Taurinorum) at around 28 BC, later renamed Augusta Taurinorum in honor of Emperor Augustus. The typical Roman street grid can still be seen, especially in the neighbourhood known as the Quadrilatero Romano (Roman Quadrilateral). Via Garibaldi traces the exact path of the Roman city's decumanus (main street) which began at the Porta Decumani, later incorporated into the Castello or Palazzo Madama. The Porta Palatina, on the north side of the current downtown, is preserved in a park near the Gothic Church. Remains of the Roman-period theater are preserved in the area of the Manica Nuova.

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• Verona - GPS 45.44743, 11.00142 Veneto - Home to the world's third-largest amphitheatre to survive from Roman times.

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• Ventimiglia 43.790278, 7.608333 Liguria - Formerly named Albium Intemelium and the capital of the Intemelii, a Ligurian tribe which long resisted the Romans, until in 115 BC it was forced to submit to Rome, when it was renamed Albintimilium. Remains of a Roman theatre (first half of the 2nd century) are visible, and remains of many other buildings have been discovered, among them traces of the ancient city walls.

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• Volterra 43.4, 10.85 Tuscany - Beautiful walled city, built on the top of a hill. One of the Twelve Cities of the ancient Etruscan League, with some of the original gates from that perioid still standing, along with a dedicated museum packed with Etruscan and Roman relics.

France

Pont du Gard BLS - The Pont du Gard and the aqueduct bridge near Nîmes - 47|3|layer=W|height=500|width=600}}

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• Amiens 49.8905, 2.2953 Picardy - Formerly known as Samarobriva ("Somme bridge"), mentioned for the first time in Julius Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico. Excavations near the city hall and the Palace of Justice revealed the foundations of the forum and thermal baths and amphitheatre, built for a population greater than that of either City of London|Londinium or Paris/5th_arrondissement|Lutetia. Two skylights cut in the last development of Place Gambetta allow observation of the forum's remains. The Musée de Picardie and the first building to have been built in France to serve as a museum as such, has its basement devoted to archeology, with a rich collection.

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• Arles 43.6778317, 4.6309197 Camargue - Called Arelate in Roman times, when it was a prosperous trade center and military base at the mouth of the Rhône river, favoured by Julius Caesar over Massalia. There are abundant Roman remains, of which the Arènes d'Arles, built in the first or second century BC, is the most famous. Nearby (12 kilometers north) stand the remains of the

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• Autun Burgundy - GPS: 46.9517, 4.2994 | This small city was the Roman garrison town of Augustodunum. Well-preserved Gallo-Roman walls still surround most of the city, and other Roman relics include a theatre and two gates, one of which is a spectacular double-decker stone structure in very good condition.

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• Bavay 50.2981, 3.7989 Nord-Pas de Calais Ancient Bagacum, an important junction of seven roads. Features a Forum from the 1st century, whose importance was unveiled by the 1940 bombing that destroyed the buildings covering it.

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• Besançon 47.234722, 6.03 Franche-Comté Ancient Vesontio was a place of strategic military importance, at a gap between the Jura and the Alps. Its Roman remains consist primarily of the Porte Noire, a 2nd-century AD triumphal arch at the foot of the hill on which the Vauban fortress stands, and the Plaza Castan, an archaeological garden decorated with Corinthian columns, right beside the Porte Noire.

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• Bordeaux 44.8480868, -0.5854967 Gironde - Formerly Burdigala, capital of Gallia Aquitania. The remains of its amphitheatre, with a capacity for 20,000 spectators, are preserved at the Palais Gallien.

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• Boulogne-sur-Mer 50.725556, 1.616944 Nord-Pas de Calais - Under the name Gesoriacum, was the major Roman port for trade and communication with Britain. Its medieval castle and walls are built on foundations that date from Roman times. The belfry serves as a museum of Celtic remains from the Roman occupation.

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• Brest (France)|Brest 48.381256, -4.494708 Finistère - Strategically located on France's finest Atlantic natural harbor, Brest is believed to be the site of ancient seaport Gesocribate, mentioned on the Peutinger Table. Some ramparts of the present castle are made of evidently Gallo-Roman workmanship.

• Clermont-Ferrand 45.7831, 3.0824 Auvergne

| counter=f Alleged birthplace of Vercingetorix, leader of the unified Gallic resistance to the Roman invasion under Julius Caesar. The city's first name was Nemessos – the Gaulish word for a sacred forest (which stood on the mound where the city's cathedral now stands). It's not far from the plateau of Gergovia, where the Gauls pushed back the Roman assault at the Battle of Gergovia in 52 BC. After the Roman conquest and the city became known as Augustonemetum. It was renamed Arvernis in the 3rd century. Nowadays, its main square features a huge statue of Vercingetorix. The ruins and archeological digs atop the battlefield plateau, 6 kilometers south of the city, are also worth a visit. }}

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• Fréjus 43.433, 6.737 Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur - Once one of the most important ports in the Mediterranean, Forum Julii still has a lot of its ruins, of exceptional archaeological value. There's the Roman Amphitheatre, arcades of the Oree Gate, and remains of the Aqueduct arches. Its harbor clogged up and is now mostly a swamp.

Glanum-triomphal arch-arc de triomphe - The triumphal arch of Glanum (10-25 BC)

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• Glanum 43.773889, 4.8325 1 kilometers south of Saint-Rémy-de-Provence Atmospheric ruins of what was once a prosperous fortified town on the Via Domitia, built around a spring believed to possess healing powers. It was overrun and destroyed by the Alamanni in 260 AD and subsequently abandoned; the first systematic excavations began in 1921. Many of the objects discovered are on display today at the Hotel de Sade, in nearby Saint-Rémy-de-Provence.

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• Golden Courtyard Museum - Musée de La Cour d'Or | 2 Rue du Haut Poirier 49.121114, 6.178216 Metz, Lorraine ☎ +33 3 87 20 13 20 - Built to house the vestiges of Gallo-Roman baths of ancient Divodurum Mediomatricum, and a rich collection of Gallo-Roman antiquities.

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• Le Mans 48.0077, 0.1984 Pays de la Loire - Seized by the Romans in 47 BC, Cenomanus was within Gallia Lugdunensis. A 3rd-century amphitheatre is still visible. Its ancient wall is one of the most complete circuits of Gallo-Roman city walls to survive. Ruins of the Roman thermal building, dating from the 3rd century, have been uncovered.

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• Lyon 45.759722, 4.819444 Rhône-Alpes Ancient Lugdunum, arguably the most important city of Roman Gaul, capital of Gallia Lugdunensis and birthplace of emperor Claudius. Home to the Gallo-Roman Museum, which is beside a gorgeous preserved theater, and the Amphitheater of the Three Gauls.

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• Marseille 43.2968041, 5.3680176 Bouches-du-Rhône - Founded by Greek colonists as Massalia (Μασσαλία), by the 4th century BC it had became one of the major trading ports of the ancient world. This status was briefly shaken when the city sided with Pompey against Julius Caesar, who had it besieged and humbled; prominence passed then to Arelate, for a couple of centuries. The Musée des Docks Romains, at the Vieux-Port neighborhood, preserves relics from the warehouses of the old Roman harbor.

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• Musée de l'Ancien Évêché - Museum of the Former Bishopric | 2, Rue Très Cloître 45.19285, 5.73217 Grenoble, Isère ☎ +33 4 76 03 15 25 +33 4 76 03 34 95 Opening Hours: Monday W-Sa 09:00-18:00, Tuesday 13:30-18:00, Sunday 10:00-19:00 Admission is free The museum is housed in the former bishop's palace on Place Notre Dame. Under the museum is an archaeological crypt; the remains of Grenoble's Roman walls and a remarkable 4th-century baptistery, discovered during work on tram line B, are not to be missed. Ask for a free audioguide (French or English) at reception.

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• Narbonne 43.1833, 3.0167 Languedoc-Roussillon - Founded in 118 BC, as Colonia Narbo Martius. Former capital of Gallia Narbonensis. A strategically important place in Roman times, being at the junction between the Via Domitia and the Via Aquitania. Trade was prominent here and there was a Forum and warehouses for grain and products. The underground storage sites are worth visiting.

• Nice - Alpes-Maritimes | 43.7034, 7.2663

| counter=f The upper city of Cimiez was a Greek and then Gallo-Roman settlement and it contains a good archaeological museum and the Musée d'Archeologie de Nice, next to some Gallo-Roman ruins. }}

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• Nîmes Gard - GPS: 43.8333, 4.3667 Home to the most pristine Roman temple in France, a very well preserved arena, and the gorgeous Pont Du Gard 43.947222, 4.535556 aqueduct nearby.

Theatre Antique Orange Ouest - Aerial view of Orange (France)|Orange's Roman theater

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• Orange (France)|Orange 44.13602, 4.80855 Provence - Features one of the best preserved theaters, dating from Augustus's reign, and a triumphal arch.

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• Périgueux 45.1929, 0.7217 Aquitaine - Called Vesunna in antiquity. Here stand the remains of a Roman amphitheatre (known locally as the Arènes Romaines) the centre of which has been turned into a green park with a water fountain; the remains of a temple of the Gallic goddess "Vesunna"; and a luxurious Roman villa, called the "Domus of Vesunna", built around a garden courtyard surrounded by a colonnaded peristyle now housed in the Vesunna Gallo-Roman Museum.

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• Reims 49.260607, 4.030026 Champagne-Ardenne - Known in ancient times as Durocortōrum, was capital of Gallia Belgica province. Has a triumphal arch as centerpiece of its Place de la République.

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• Thermes de Cluny - 6 place Paul Painlevé 48.850556, 2.343333 Paris/5th arrondissement ☎ +33 1 53 73 78 00 - The remains of the bathing complex of ancient Lutetia Parisiorum, now partly an archeological site, and partly incorporated into the adjacent Musée National du Moyen Age. Site of the coronation of emperor Julian "the Apostate" in February 360. Lutetia, renamed Parisius in the 5th century AD, was mainly built on the Seine's southern margin; the Roman cardo maximus (main axis) is still observed on the Left Bank (Rue St-Jacques) and on the Right Bank (Rue St-Martin). Some 800 m away, stand the Arènes de Lutèce GPS 48.845, 2.352778, a preserved 1st century amphitheater. There's also the Early Christian archeological crypt under the Notre Dame cathedral's forecourt. For more Roman antiquities in Paris and the Louvre is the obvious place to go.

• Tropaeum Alpium 43.744778, 7.401803 La Turbie village, 4 kilometers east of Monaco

| counter=f Built in honor of emperor Augustus, to celebrate his definitive victory over the ancient tribes who populated the Alps, at the boundary between Italy and Gallia Narbonensis. Visitors can also see the Roman quarry, about 500 metres away, with its sections of carved columns in the stone. }}

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• Vaison-la-Romaine 44.23900, 5.074661 Provence - Features a beautiful bridge from the 1st century.

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• Vienne (city)|Vienne 45.5242, 4.8781 Rhône-Alpes - Once the capital city of the Allobroges, a Gallic people, ancient Vienna was transformed into a Roman colony in 47 BC under Julius Caesar. Has extensive Roman remains, which include an Imperial temple of Augustus and Livia and the Plan de l'Aiguille, a truncated pyramid resting on a portico with four arches, originally inside its circus, (out of town) the remains of a Roman theatre, and a ruined thirteenth-century castle that was built on Roman footings. Several ancient aqueducts and traces of Roman roads can also be seen.

Spain

Torre de Hércules - DivesGallaecia2012-3 - Torre de Hércules in A Coruña

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• Acinipo 36.8318, -5.24044 20 kilometers north of Ronda, Andalusia - Teatroacinipo.JPG Opening Hours: Tuesday - Saturday 10:00-17:00, Sunday 09:00-14:00 Remains of a Roman city, destroyed in 429 AD by the Vandals. Includes the remains of a Roman theatre, as well as Roman baths.

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• A Coruña 43.371491,-8.395970 Galicia - Home to the Tower of Hercules, it may be the oldest lighthouse in the world that is still in use. It's a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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• Alcalá de Henares 40.481847, -3.364256 Community of Madrid - Roman Alcalá was called Complutum. It features the House of Hyppolitus, one of the better fitted-out Roman archaeological complexes in the Madrid area, built at the end of the 3rd century or beginnings of the 4th century AD. It is famous for its well preserved mosaics.

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• Alicante 38.364444, -0.438333 Valencian Community Ancient Lucentum, probably founded as a Phoenician colony, enjoyed its peak between the 1st century BC and the 1st century AD. Its archaeological site covers an area of some 30,000 m² (7.4 acres), and features the remains of the fortifying wall (including the foundations of the pre-Roman defensive towers) and the baths and the forum, part of the Muslim necropolis, and a multitude of houses.

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• Almuñécar 36.733333, -3.683333 Andalusia - City with Phoenician origins, home to very interesting remains, of which the most significant are five aqueducts. All, remarkably, are still standing and four of them are still in use after 2,000 years.

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Baelo Claudia GPS 36.089722, -5.774722 22 kilometers west of Tarifa, Andalusia. Trading post and garum (fish sauce) production center, beautifully restored and preserved, includes a forum and theatre and market. }}

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• Cádiz 36.5349826, -6.2963328 Andalusia - Oldest continuously inhabited city in the Iberian Peninsula, traditionally dated to 1104 BC. The remains of its Roman theatre are just behind the Old Gothic Church.

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• Cartagena (Spain)|Cartagena 37.5995, -0.9841 Murcia - Founded as a colony of Carthage, it was conquered by general Scipio Africanus in 209 BC and renamed Carthago Nova. Home to a restored Roman theatre, two important archaeological museums and the remains of the Punic rampart (built in 227 BC with the foundation of the city), a colonnade, among other nice antiquities.

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• Castro Urdiales 43.384444, -3.215000 Cantabria - Established as a Roman colony in AD 74 under the name Flaviobriga, during the reign of emperor Vespasian. The Flaviobriga archaeological site is under the Casco Viejo (old town), two meters deep. Remains of the Roman colony can be visited in the Regional Museum of Prehistory and Archaeology of Cantabria.

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• Ceuta 35.888333, -5.315556 exclave in North Africa - Called Abyla by the Carthaginians, and Ad Septem Fratres or simply Septem, by the Romans (due to the seven little hills of the promontory where the city lies, that looked like seven brothers, or septem fratres in Latin). The ruins of a Roman basilica have been discovered.

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• Córdoba - GPS 37.88478, -4.77956 Andalusia - Former capital of Hispania Baetica. Has a Roman bridge marked by a triumphal arch and an adjacent single-column monument and it crosses to an old fortified gate (now a museum).

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• Elche 38.266944, -0.698333 Valencian Community - This original location was settled by the Greeks and later occupied by Carthaginians and Romans. Greek colonists named it Helike around 600 BC. The Romans called the city Ilici (or Illice) and granted it the status of colonia. The present-day Baños Arabes (Arabic Baths) actually re-uses old Roman baths.

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• Guadalmina | 36.4636, -5.0004 12 kilometers west of Marbella, Costa del Sol - 3rd-century AD ruins of Roman baths, known as Las Bóvedas ("the domes") within a protected archaeological site.

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• Gijón 43.5333, -5.7000 Asturias - Features a lot of interesting remains, such as the Roman baths of Campo Valdés (1st or 2nd centuries AD) and the Roman wall (3rd and 4th centuries) and the Roman village of Veranes.

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• León, 42.605556, -5.57 Castile-Leon - Meón was founded in the 1st century BC by the Roman legion Legio VI Victrix, which served under Caesar Augustus during the Cantabrian Wars (29-19 BC) and the final stage of the Roman conquest of Hispania. In the year 74 AD and the Legio VII Gemina —recruited from the Hispanics by Galba in 69 AD— settled in a permanent military camp that was the origin of the city. Its modern name is derived from the city's Latin name Castra Legionis, or Legio for short. There are significant remains of its walls, built in the 1st century BC and enlarged in the 3rd-4th centuries AD, and the typical Roman street grid is observed - Calle Ancha is the Decumanus Maximus.

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• Lugo 43.016667, -7.55 Galicia - Only city in the world to be surrounded by completely intact Roman walls.

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• Málaga 36.719444, -4.42 Andalusia - Founded by the Phoenicians as Malaka about 770 BC. From 218 BC it was ruled by Rome, as Malaca. Its highlight is the Roman theatre, which dates from the 1st century BC and was excavated in 1951.

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• Melilla 35.3000, -2.9500 exclave in North Africa - Founded as a Phoenician settlement called "Rhusadhir", Russaderion ( Ῥυσσάδειρον) for the Greeks or Rusadir for the Romans. Later it became a part of the Roman province of Mauretania Tingitana. The large fortress which stands immediately to the north of the port, Melilla la Vieja ("Old Melilla"), has ramparts of fundamentally Roman workmanship.

Puente romano en mérida - Roman Bridge in Mérida

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• Mérida (Spain)|Mérida 38.916667, -6.333333 Extremadura - Formerly Emerita Augusta and the capital of the Roman province of Lusitania. Featured on the UNESCO World Heritage List for its several impressive remains, among them the longest of all existing Roman bridges.

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• Museu d'Història de la Ciutat de Barcelona - 41.38391, 2.17769 Barcelona/Ciutat Vella - Includes access to the underground ruins of ancient Barcino, whose Roman urban planning is very evident inside the walled city, which is correspondent to the contemporary Barri Gòtic.

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• Santiponce 37.435278, -6.043333 Andalusia - Features the ruins of Italica, founded in 206 BC by the great Roman general Publius Cornelius Scipio "Africanus", and the birthplace of emperors Trajan and Hadrian. Its highlight is one of the largest known Roman amphitheatres, with seats for 25,000. Well worth the quick trip from Seville (9 kilometers).

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• Segovia 40.9500, -4.1667 Castile-Leon - Famous for its aqueduct, one of the best preserved and most scenic anywhere.

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• Tarragona Catalonia - GPS: 41.115697, 1.249594 Former Tarraco, capital of Hispania Tarraconensis. A beautiful amphitheater by the beach, a small preserved Forum and a good museum

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• Zaragoza 41.6500,-0.8833 Aragon - First named Caesaraugusta, after Emperor Augustus. Its Forum, Thermal Baths, Riverine Port and Great Theatre are very well preserved. You can purchase a "Caesaraugusta route" joint ticket for this route of 4 museums, with a better price than seeing them separately.

Portugal

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• Beja 38.033333333333, -7.8833333333333 Baixo Alentejo - Supposed to be the Roman Pax Julia, or Paca. Still surrounded by remains of old Roman walls. Said to be the richest in Roman remains of all the cities in Portugal, after Évora.

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• Braga 41.544167,-8.421944 Minho Ancient Bracara Augusta has some preserved remains and is host to the Braga Romana (Roman Braga) cultural fair, that celebrates the Roman influence in its history. It happens around the streets of the downtown, where people dress like ancient Romans and sell art and other souvenirs in tents. It is usually on the last weekend of May.

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• Chaves 41.75, -7.5333333333333 Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro - Formerly known as Aquæ Flaviæ. Home to a lovely preserved Roman bridge, 140 m long, with 12 visible arches, built by order of Emperor Trajan.

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• Coimbra 40.211183, -8.429156 Beira Litoral - In modern Coimbra there are a few remains from ancient Aeminium. The most important is the cryptoporticus, an underground gallery of arched corridors built in the 1st or 2nd century AD to support the forum of the city. It can be visited through the Machado de Castro Museum, formerly the bishop's palace, built during the Middle Ages. 16 kilometers to the south and there's one of the largest Roman settlements excavated in Portugal, Conímbriga GPS 40.099444, -8.490556, classified as a National Monument.

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• Évora 38.5714,-7.9086 Alentejo Central - Julius Caesar called it Liberalitas Julia. Pliny the Elder also visited this town and mentioned it in his book Naturalis Historia as Ebora Cerealis. Vestiges from this period (the so-called Temple of Diana, city walls and ruins of Roman baths) still remain.

• Lisbon 38.71027, -9.13241

| counter=p Believed to have Phoenician origins, Felicitas Iulia Olisipo, built on seven hills at the mouth of the Tagus river, quickly rose to prominence after the Punic wars, as Lusitania's primary port and commercial centre (which it still is). Several buildings on Rua Augusta have underground visitable archeological finds. Its old wall (Cerca Velha) has been studied, proven to be a primarily Roman construction, and been made a valued touristic attraction with several "Wall Walk" signs. The ruins of its theater are enclosed in a dedicated museum. }}

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Santiago do Cacém GPS 38.009689,-8.683817 Alentejo Litoral. Features the ruins of ancient Miróbriga, with a Forum, a hippodrome, baths, an Imperial temple (to worship the Roman Emperors) and a temple dedicated to Venus. The hippodrome and baths are among the best preserved in Portugal.

England and Wales

Hadrian's Wall west of Housesteads 3 - Part of Hadrian's Wall, west of Hexham#Go next|Housesteads - 53|-1|group=e|height=500|width=400

• Bath 51.38, -2.36 Somerset

| counter=e Aquae Sulis is the location of the Roman baths and the ruins of which are still visitable. The waters of the Celtic goddess Sulis are the only thermal waters in Britain. You can bathe like a Roman in the modern baths next door.

• Birdoswald Roman Fort - Gilsland, CA8 7DD 54.989424, -2.60228 7 miles north-east of Brampton (Cumbria)|Brampton, Cumbria ☎ +44 1697 747602 - adults £5.40, children £3.20, concessions £4.90

| counter=e Only fort extensively excavated on the turf sector of Hadrian's Wall. It has produced lots of archaeological evidence for the phases of construction of the Wall. Also the first fort to produce substantial evidence for what happened on the Wall when Roman rule in Britain ended. }}

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• Caerleon - 51.610283, -2.956269 Monmouthshire

Isca was the hub of Roman civilisation in Wales. In the town are the public baths, large amphitheatre (with mythological links to Camelot) and the world's last-remaining legionary barracks. The other main attraction is the National Roman Legion Museum, which researches and displays half a million objects of Antiquity from the area around Caerleon.

• Caernarfon 53.1373, -4.2659 Gwynedd

| counter=e The mediaeval castle is the main attraction here, but just a few hundred metres away are the remains of the most north-westerly fort in the Roman Empire, Segontium. }}

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• Caerwent - 51.611, -2.768 near Caldicot, Monmouthshire - Tribal capital of the Silures, most of Venta Silurum's remains date from the 4th century, including the impressive 5 metre-high town wall, houses, forum-basilica and a Romano-British temple and the latter highlighting how Romanisation often existed in harmony with older local traditions.

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• Canterbury (England)|Canterbury 51.2786861, 1.0814916 Kent - Founded as the Romano-Celtic town of Durovernum Cantiacorum. Home to the Canterbury Roman Museum, built to house the remains of a Roman domus and its courtyard.

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• Carlisle 54.8947, -2.9388 Cumbria An ideal base for adventuring the western part of Hadrian's Wall.

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• Chester 53.1926, -2.8918 Cheshire Ancient Deva, or Castra Devana and the fortress city of the 20th Legion (Legio XX Valeria Victrix). As one of the great military bases in Roman England, has its fair share of Roman ruins.

• Chichester 50.83652, -0.77918 West Sussex

| counter=e Believed to have been one of the bridgeheads of the Roman invasion of Britain. The downtown is built on the Roman town of Noviomagus, and it benefits from the cross-shaped design favoured by the Romans - North Street, South Street, East Street and West Street converge on the Chichester Cross, a medieval market cross. Just outside the city is Fishbourne Palace, home to the largest collection of mosaics in the UK and a unique formal Roman garden.

• Cirencester 51.7173, -1.9711 Gloucestershire

| counter=e Ancient Corinium is the Roman highlight of the Cotswolds, with the remains of an amphitheatre - nowadays a grass-covered bowl - and the Corinium Museum. A small section of the old Roman wall can be seen at Abbey Park.

• Colchester (England)|Colchester 51.8905797, 0.9030726 Essex (England)|Essex

| counter=e Oldest recorded Roman town in Britain, claimed to be the oldest town in the UK. As Camulodunum, was for a time the capital of Roman Britain. Some modern scholars often speculate that "Camelot" could actually be "Camulod" misspelled. Its castle is built upon the foundations of the Temple of Emperor Claudius. }}

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• Dolaucothi Gold Mines - Pumsaint, Llanwrda, Carmarthenshire, SA19 8US 52.0443, -3.94824 near Lampeter, Carmarthenshire ☎ +44 1558 650177 The presence of untapped Gold resources was one of the primary reasons the Romans invaded Britain, and here is the proof. Visitors can tour the mines, and walk in the footsteps of 2000 year-old miners.

Roman light house Dover top - Roman lighthouse, Dover

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• Dover (England)|Dover 51.12867, 1.32185 Kent

Portus Dubris was founded at the closest point to continental Europe, ideal for a cross-channel port. In the Roman era, it grew into an important military and mercantile harbour. The Roman lighthouse built on the present-day site of Dover Castle may be the oldest stone building in Britain.

• Exeter 50.716667, -3.533333 Devon

| counter=e Its Roman name was Isca Dumnomiorum, and it served as the base of the 5000-man Legio II Augusta for 20 years. Most of the original Roman wall can still be seen today; about 70% of it remains, and most of its route can be traced on foot. }}

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• Gloucester (England)|Gloucester 51.87, -2.24 Gloucestershire - Founded in 97 AD under Emperor Nerva as Colonia Glevum Nervensis, or shortly, Glevum. Roman tunnels and fortifications exist underneath the downtown and can be visited through the museum.

• Eskdale Green|Hardknott Fort Hardknott Pass, Eskdale, Cumbria, CA19 1TH 54.402728, -3.2054 Lake District National Park

| counter=e The remains of this northern military outpost are well-marked and the situation is dramatic, high in the Cumbrian mountains. }}

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• Hexham - GPS 54.9715,-2.1025 Northumberland An ideal base for adventuring the middle section of Hadrian's Wall.

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• Leicester 52.6346, -1.1413006 Leicestershire - Founded as Ratae Corieltauvorum in 50 AD. Its Jewry Wall Museum features the 2000 year old remains of a Roman bathing complex. In 2013 and the discovery of a Roman cemetery, found just outside the old city walls and dating back to 300 AD, was announced.

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• Lincoln 53.25, -0.55 Lincolnshire - Developed from the Roman town of Lindum Colonia. Its Roman remains are mainly scattered around the cathedral quarter. Walking along Bailgate, notice the circles of old stones in the modern road surface: these are the original foundations of the Roman pillars which lined this route - Ermine Street, which stretched from London to York.

• City of London 51.5176183, -0.0967782

| counter=e Major port and commercial centre in Roman Britain, under the name Londinium. Its Roman wall survived for another 1,600 years and broadly continues to define its perimeter. There are picturesque exposed sections close to the present Museum of London (which has a permanent exhibition of life in Londinium), near the Barbican Centre, as well as close to the Tower of London. The amphitheatre is now open to the public, underneath the Guildhall. }}

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• Richborough Roman Fort and Amphitheatre - Off Richborough Road, CT13 9JW 51.289701, 1.328818 near Sandwich (England)|Sandwich, Kent ☎ +44 1304 612013 - adults £5.00, children £3.00, concessions £4.50 One of the main beachheads of the Claudian invasion of 43 AD, today a collection of many phases of Roman remains still visible, under the auspices of English Heritage, which describes it as 'perhaps the most symbolically important of all Roman sites in Britain'.

• Segedunum Roman Fort, Baths & Museum - Buddle Street, Wallsend 54.98837, -1.53091 Tyne and Wear ☎ +44 191 278 4217 | Opening Hours: April - May: Monday to Sun 10:00-16:30; June-Aug: Monday to Sun 10:00-17:00; September - Nov 1: Monday to Sun 10:00-16:00; Nov 2-Mar: Monday to Friday10:00-14:30 Adults £5.95, concessions (60+ and students) £3.95

| counter=e The remains of the Roman fort at Segedunum, eastern terminus of Hadrian's Wall. It's a short walk away from the Wallsend Metro station. In fact many of the signs at the metro station have been translated into Latin, including the aptly named Vomitorium.

• Silchester - 51.356481, -1.077628 near Basingstoke#Q1027253|Basingstoke, Hampshire

| counter=e Known to the Romans as Calleva Atrebatum, Silchester was abandoned after the Roman perioid which means that much of the archaeology remains. All that is left on the surface now is a complete ring of city walls and the amphitheatre, though ongoing archaeological digs (which you may get to see) could reveal more. Silchester is about as isolated a place as you will find in south-east England; on a spring weekday you are likely to find yourself sharing the ruins only with cows. Free to access every day, sunrise-sunset. }}

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• Street Albans 51.752725,-0.339436 Hertfordshire

Verulamium has left behind a excellently maintained amphitheatre and city walls. The city's Verulamium Museum is dedicated to local Roman history, and hosts many artefacts including mosaics, coins and wall plasters. Baños Romanos, Bath, Inglaterra, 2014-08-12, DD 39-41 HDR - |The Roman baths in Bath

• Wroxeter Roman City - Wroxeter, SY5 6PH 52.670247, -2.645571 near Shrewsbury (Shropshire)|Shrewsbury, Shropshire ☎ +44 1743 761330 - counter=e At one stage, Viroconium Cornoviorum was the fourth-largest city in Roman Britain. The main attractions today are the remains of the bath house and a tall section of free-standing wall, as well as a reconstructed town house, an impressive piece of experimental archaeology using only methods and materials available to Roman Britons.

• York 53.9622, -1.0821North Yorkshire

| counter=e Founded as Eboracum in 71 AD. After 211, became the capital of the province Britannia Inferior. Constantine the Great was first proclaimed Emperor in this city. Its medieval city walls are built on Roman perioid foundations. Features several events with re-enactors.

Belgium

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• Arlon 49.683333, 5.816667 Wallonia - Formerly the vicus of Orolaunum, Arlon has parts of its Gallo-Roman defensive wall, built in the 3rd century, still standing, and an outstanding archeological museum.

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• Liège 50.645242, 5.573201 Wallonia - Was known as Vicus Leudicus in Roman times. An archeological display and the Archeoforum, can be visited under the Place Street Lambert, showing Roman and medieval remains.

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• Tongeren 50.78044, 5.46336 Flanders - Oldest town of Belgium. Founded as the military camp Atuatuca Tungrorum, built around 50 BC by Sabinus and Cotta, lieutenants in the army of Julius Caesar. More than 1,500 meters of the original Roman wall, dating from the 2nd century, has been preserved. The town market features a statue of Gallic leader Ambiorix. There's also a Gallo-Roman museum.

Netherlands

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• Alphen aan den Rijn 52.1333, 4.6500 Groene Hart - Formerly the frontier garrison of Castellum Albanianae on the Old Rhine. Home to the Archeon, a theme park about living history of the Netherlands, containing 43 buildings from the Prehistory, Roman perioid and Middle Ages.

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• Heerlen 50.88430, 5.98592 South Limburg - Former Roman military settlement, known as Coriovallum, at the crossroads of the Boulogne-sur-Mer|Boulogne -Cologne and Xanten-Aachen -Trier routes. Its bathing complex has been excavated and is now a museum.

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• Katwijk 52.2000, 4.4000 Bollenstreek - In Romans times, its name was Lugdunum Batavorum. It was a place of strategic importance, at the Empire's northern border, at the mouth of the Rhine, which in Roman times was larger in this area than it is today. There was a good deal of traffic along the Rhine. It was also a jumping-off point for the voyage to Britain.

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• Maastricht 50.84791, 5.693468 Limburg (Netherlands)|Limburg - Started to exist when the Romans built a bridge over the river Meuse (Maas in Dutch, Mosa in Latin) in the 1st century AD, and named it Traiectum ad Mosam. Remains of the Roman road and the bridge, a religious shrine, a Roman bath, a granary, some houses and the 4th-century castrum walls and gates, have been excavated. Fragments of provincial Roman sculptures, as well as coins, jewelry, glass, pottery and other objects from Roman Maastricht, are on display in the exhibition space of the city's public library (Centre Céramique).The cellar of the Derlon Hotel was surveyed by Maastricht's city archeologists before restoration could start; several Roman remains, from the 2nd, 3rd and 4th century, were found, and considered so important that it was decided to conserve and exhibit them. The following can be seen in the cellar of Derlon Hotel part of a 2nd and 3rd century square, a 3rd century well, part of a pre- Roman cobblestone road and sections of a wall and a gate dating from the 4th century.

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• Nijmegen 51.84638, 5.87111 Gelderland - Founded as Ulpia Noviomagus Batavorum, or Noviomagus for short, a frontier garrison, in the 1st century BC. A few Roman remains are visible today; a fragment of the old city wall can be seen near the casino, and the foundations of the amphitheatre are traced in the paving of the present-day Rembrandtstraat. The Valkhof museum includes artifacts from the Roman era.

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• Rijksmuseum van Oudheden - National Museum of Antiquities | Rapenburg 28 52.158333, 4.485833 Leiden, Bollenstreek ☎ +31 71 516 3163 | Opening Hours: Tuesday - F, 10AM Monday - 5PM & Sa/Su/holidays, 12AM Monday - 5PM Adult €9.50, Child (4-17) €3.00, (0-3) free This is a traditional museum on the history of people. Includes an outstanding collection of ancient Egyptian antiquities, and a small temple that was given to the Netherlands by the Egyptians for their help with the Aswan monuments transfer project. It also features an exhibition on the archeological history of the Netherlands, including dug-up burial treasures and relics from Roman sites in the nation.

• Utrecht 52.090833, 5.121667 Western Netherlands

| counter=n Its history goes back to 47 AD, when emperor Claudius ordered his general Corbulo to build a defensive line along the Rhine and then the Empire's northernmost border. A stronghold (Castrum) was built at a crossing in the river, and called Traiectum ("crossingplace"). In the local language this became Trecht, Uut-Trecht (uut, "downriver", added to distinguish U-trecht from Maas-tricht) and later Utrecht. On the place where once the castrum stood, now stands the Domchurch built in the 13th century. Remnants of the Roman stone wall can be visited below the buildings around Dom Plaza. }}

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• Woerden 52.086081, 4.884545 Western Netherlands - Former frontier garrison town, called Laurum or Laurium. Artifacts and even ships from that time have been found and some of them are exhibited in the parking garage (appropriately called Castellum) and in the city museum.

Germany

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• Aachen 50.774054, 6.086951 Eifel According to legend and the Roman spa resort city of Aquae Granni was founded by order of emperor Hadrian, circa 124 AD. Remains have been found of three bathhouses, including two fountains at the Elisenbrunnen, a neo-classical hall covering one of the city's famous thermal spas (Muslim Friendly).

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• Archäologisches Museum Frankfurt - Archaeological Museum | @rankfurt.de Karmelitergasse 1 50.1090, 8.6786 Frankfurt, Rhine-Main ☎ +49 69-212-35896 +49 69-212-30700 Opening Hours: Monday closed; Tuesday - Sunday 10AM - 5PM; West 10AM - 8PM 7 €for an adult; 3.50 €for a child Mocated in a building which formerly housed a Carmelite monastery, shows finds from the Roman town of Nida (Frankfurt-Heddernheim). There's also an open-air archaeological installation, showing the foundations of the oldest building in the city: the Roman baths from the 1st and 2nd century.

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• Augsburg 48.366667, 10.9 Bavaria - Germany's third oldest city, being founded as Augusta Vindelicorum, named after the emperor Augustus. Former capital of the province of Raetia and administrative and economic centre of the Roman dominion from the northern Alps to the Danube River. Nowadays, features the Römisches Museum, founded as early as 1822 as "Antiquarium Romanum" (closed for renovation, it has been rehoused at a temporary location until 2022), and hosts the annual German Römerfest.

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• Baden-Baden 48.762778, 8.240833 Black Forest - Known as Aquae to the Romans. The bath-conscious emperor Caracalla once came here to ease his arthritic aches. The ruins of the bathing complex are preserved under the aptly-named Römerplatz (Roman Plaza).

• Cologne 50.936389, 6.952778 North Rhine-Westphalia

| counter=d Founded as Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium, was the former capital of the Roman province of Germania Inferior. Home to an extensive Romano-Germanic Museum, above several ruins, right beside the famous cathedral. }}

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• Mainz 49.993523, 8.2734254 Rhineland-Palatinate Ancient Mogontiacum was founded by the Roman general Drusus, brother of emperor Tiberius and father of emperor Claudius, at the strategic confluence of the Rhine and the Main; later, it became the provincial capital of Germania Superior, and an important funeral monument dedicated to Drusus was built. The so-called Drususstein still stands inside the fortress of Mainz.

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• Regensburg 49.02012, 12.09854 Upper Palatinate - Founded as the military camp Castra Regina. Its Porta Praetoria is believed to be Germany's most ancient stone building, dating back to 179 AD.

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• Saalburg - 50.2706, 8.5672 Bad Homburg - The Saalburg fort is on the Limes Germanicus, built to keep the various "Barbarians" out, which has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Trier Porta Nigra BW 1 - |Trier's Porta Nigra

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• Trier 49.756667, 6.641389 Moselle Valley - The oldest city of Germany is home to the Porta Nigra ("black gate") monument, and the remains of three thermae (bathing complexes).

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• Wiesbaden 50.08, 8.24 Hesse - Pliny the Elder first mentioned the thermal springs of Aquae Mattiacorum in his Naturalis Historia. Mogontiacum, base of 2 (at times 3) Roman legions, was just over the Rhine and connected by a bridge at the present-day borough of Mainz-Kastel (Roman "castellum"), a strongly fortified bridgehead. Mainz-Kastel was only detached from Mainz and incorporated into Wiesbaden no sooner than 25 July 1945. Some remains of the so-called Heidenmauer ("Heathen Wall"), and of a Roman triumphal arch, can be seen.

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• Xanten Archeological Park - 51.662222, 6.453889 North Rhine-Westphalia - Germany's largest archeological park, on the site of ancient Castra Vetera, another part of the Limes Germanicus.

• Kempten - 47.733333, 10.316667 Allgäu - Kempten Basilika St. Lorenz Kempten (Foto Hilarmont) AAA

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• Museum and Park Kalkriese - 52.4075, 8.13 Kalkriese near Osnabrück de:Museum und Park Kalkriese

| counter=d Here was fought the Teutoburg Forest battle, in 9 CE, in which Varus and three Roman legions perished against Arminius, a Roman officer of Germanic origin who betrayed the Romans and fought against them.

Switzerland

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• Augusta Raurica 47.533889, 7.721389 Northwestern Switzerland - Very well preserved theater and arena in the greater Basel urban area. Site of the Swiss Römerfest.

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• Musée Romain Lausanne-Vidy - Chemin du Bois-de-Vaux 24 46.51894, 6.59864 Lausanne ☎ +41 21 315 41 85 | Opening Hours: Tuesday - Sunday 11:00-18:00 CHF8, students CHF5 On display are architectural finds from the Roman camp Lausanna, just by the lake, which still features the remains of walls and a forum from the time of Julius Caesar.

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• Martigny 46.1, 7.066667 Valais - Features interesting remains from Octodurus, conquered by the Roman Empire in 57 BC, in order to protect the strategically important pass of Poeninus (now known as the Great St. Bernard). It was later renamed Forum Claudii Vallensium Octodurensium.

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• Nyon 46.383333, 6.233333 Vaud - Founded as Colonia Julia Equestris, later Noviodunum. Home to the best Roman museum inside Switzerland.

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• Solothurn 47.2167,7.5333 Berne Region - Founded as early as 350 BC as Castrum Salodurum, a bell-shaped walled fort. The remains can still be seen at Friedhofplatz and in Löwengasse.

Austria

|counter=au Vienna Roman Museum - Römermuseum | Hoher Markt 3 48.210792, 16.372705 Vienna/Innere Stadt ☎ +43 1 535 56 06 +43 1 505 87 47 7201 Opening Hours: T-Su and holidays 09:00-18:00 €6 (adults), €4 (seniors/students/Vienna Card), free (children/youth under 19), free the first Sunday of every month This museum houses a collection of artifacts from Vindobona, as this Danubian garrison settlement was then known. There are Roman ruins in the cellar of the museum itself, first discovered during construction work in 1948, and for many years only accessible to the public via a narrow staircase, before the building was transformed into a full-fledged museum in 2008. }}

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• Carnuntum - 48.116667, 16.866667 - Roman city and archaeological park on the site of the former capital of Pannonia Superior. Site of the contemporary Austrian Römerfest.

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• Villach 46.616667, 13.85 Carinthia - Called Sanctium in Roman times, home to a hot spring (something very valued at those times) and a museum.

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• Archaeological Park Magdalensberg 46.7245999, 14.4292301 close to Klagenfurt, Carinthia About 4 hectares large, shows important areas of the ancient settlement of Virunum, archaeologically studied since 1948.

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• Wattens 47.29463, 11.6014 Tyrol - Nowadays best known as the headquarters of the Swarovski crystal company and the town features remains of a Roman villa, unearthed during construction works in 2012. Next to the glass covered archaeological remains and there are display cases with pottery and coins from a 732-piece Gold and silver treasure belonging to a legionary. The St. Larentius church, very near in the town center, also dates back to the Roman period.

Hungary

• Aquincum Museum - 47.56397, 19.05040 Budapest/Óbuda

| counter=hu Aquincum was first a Danubian garrison town and later became capital of Pannonia Inferior. Emperor-philosopher Marcus Aurelius may have written at least part of his Meditations at Aquincum. The Aquincum Museum features indoor and outdoor parts; the latter include two amphitheaters and the Aquincum Civil Amphitheater and the Aquincum Military Amphitheater (both built in the 1st century AD) and the remains of the Roman camp's eastern gate. It hosts the annual Floralia spring festival. }}

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• Dunakeszi 47.6582, 19.1197 Central Hungary - Small wall remains of a fort, belonging to the Ripa Pannonica - the fluvial part of the Limes protection system - can be see here.

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• Esztergom 47.79806, 18.7363 Transdanubia As a Roman town, was called Solva. Its castle, built on ancient Roman foundations, is nowadays a museum, with a permanent Roman exhibition.

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• Györ 47.68762, 17.63079 Transdanubia - Called Arrabona in Roman times, is home to a good archeological museum.

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• Pécs 46.07745, 18.22799 Transdanubia - Founded as Sopianae. Its centre was where the Postal Palace now stands. Some parts of the Roman aqueduct are still visible. Its early Christian necropolis, called Cella Septichora, is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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• Sopron - GPS 47.68674,16.59117 Transdanubia

a Roman city called Scarbantia stood here. Its present main square, which has an archeology museum, was the forum. Its firewatch tower's cylindrical lower part was built on the remains of the Roman town wall, and served as the north tower of the city from the 13th century onwards.

• Szombathely 47.2306, 16.6252 Transdanubia

| counter=hu Oldest recorded city in Hungary, founded in 45 AD under the name of Colonia Claudia Savariensum or Savaria for short. It was the former capital of the Pannonia Superior province. Home to a reconstructed Temple of Isis, a restored Roman garden and the Savaria historical theme park. Every year, in August, it hosts the Savaria Historical Carnival. }}

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• Tác - 47.082, 18.408 Transdanubia - Home to the archeological site of Roman Gorsium and the nation's largest open-air museum of this period

Slovenia

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• Celje 46.235833, 15.267500 Pohorje-Savinjska - Famous for its multitude of remains from the rich Roman settlement called Celeia. Has a rich regional museum. Remains of various buildings and the ancient city walls are also scattered around the town itself.

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• Ljubljana | 46.045640, 14.498791 Central Slovenia - Mjubljana was anciently called Colonia Iulia Aemona. There still are remains of its Roman city walls, including a number of pillars from an entrance gate.

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• Ptuj 46.4167, 15.8667 Eastern Slovenia - Emperor Trajan granted this settlement city status and named it Colonia Ulpia Traiana Poetovio. The central square of the modern town features The Orpheus Monument, originally a grave marker of Marcus Valerius Verus and the mayor of Poetovio in the 2nd century AD. There is also a Mithraeum and a good regional museum.

Croatia

Croatia Pula Amphitheatre 2014-10-11 11-04-27 - The Roman arena in Pula

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• Poreč 45.216666666667, 13.583333333333 Istria - The Roman colony of Colonia Iulia Parentium. The town plan still shows the ancient Roman Castrum structure. The main streets are Decumanus and Cardo Maximus, still preserved in their original forms. Marafor is a Roman square with two temples attached. One of them, erected in the first century AD, is dedicated to the Roman god Neptune. There's a preserved floor mosaic, originally part of a large Roman house, in the garden of the Euphrasian Basilica, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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• Pula Istria - GPS: 44.866667, 13.85 Known for its many surviving ancient Roman buildings and the most famous of which is its 1st-century amphitheater, among the largest surviving Roman arenas in the world.

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• Split 43.51, 16.45 Dalmatia A city built around the palace of emperor Diocletian, where he voluntarily retired after having had enough of ruling his empire.

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• Zadar 44.11547, 15.22502 Northern Dalmatia - Has a preserved Forum, built by order of Augustus, and an archeological museum.

Serbia

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• Belgrade 44.823333, 20.450278 - Its oldest core, nowadays called the Kalemegdan Fortress, was founded in the 3rd century BC as Singidunum by the Celtic tribe of Scordisci, who had defeated Thracian and Dacian tribes that previously lived in and around the fort. The city-fortress was conquered in 34–33 BC by the Roman army led by Silanus, and became a part of the Danubian military frontier. Relics of that perioid can still be seen inside and outside the fortress.

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• Niš 43.319167, 21.896111 Podunavlje - Birthplace of emperor Constantine the Great. The exact place where he was born (Villa Mediana) has been preserved.

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• Viminacium Archeological Park - 44.73698, 21.225605 12 kilometers from Požarevac - Remains of a major city and military camp and the provincial capital of Moesia Superior. The archaeological site occupies a total of 450 hectares (1,100 acres), and contains remains of temples, streets, squares, amphitheatres, palaces, hippodromes and Roman baths.

Romania

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• Alba Iulia 46.069122, 23.567455 Transylvania

Apulum was the largest castrum (fortress city) located in Romania, occupying 37.5 hectares (93 acres). The present fortress, built in the 18th century, houses some Roman remains. }}

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• Constanța 44.172997, 28.658287 Northern Dobruja - Called Tomis in antiquity. Famous poet Ovid died in exile here. Has a big floor mosaic which had a dedicated museum built around it.

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• Deva 45.885884, 22.898308 Transylvania - Fortress city known in ancient times as Castrum Deva. Home to the Museum of Dacian and Roman Civilization.

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• Mangalia 43.817222, 28.582778 Northern Dobruja - Started to exist as a Greek colony named Callatis in the 6th century BC. Today, it's a rich archeological site, with ruins of the original Callatis fortress and an archeological museum.

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• Roșia Montană 46.306111, 23.130278 Transylvania - Founded during the rule of Trajan as a mining town, Alburnus Maior. Features one of the most extensive networks of Roman Gold mines, some of them open to visitors.

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• Tropaeum Traiani 44.102, 27.955 Adamclisi, Northern Dobruja - Monument built in 109 AD to commemorate Trajan's victories over the Dacians. The present edifice is a reconstruction dating from 1977. There's a nearby museum, containing many archaeological objects, including parts of the original Roman monument.

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• Ulpia Traiana Sarmizegetusa 45.513, 22.7873 close to Hațeg, Transylvania Archeological site of the capital of the province of Dacia.

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• Jidava 45.220747, 25.012486 close to Câmpulung, Muntenia - Fort in the Roman province of Dacia.

Bulgaria

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• Burgas 42.5, 27.466666666667 Bulgarian Black Sea Coast - The present city's territory is home to three ancient sites of the Via Pontica: Develtum, Poros and the newly excavated Aquae Calidae. There is also an archeological museum.

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• Hisarya - Hissar | 42.5, 24.7 Upper Thracian Plain - Site of mineral thermal spas (Muslim Friendly). During the Roman rule, this town, called Augusta and later Sevastopolis, was a wealthy resort centre, with Imperial palaces, wide stone streets, marble baths, a sewage system and lots of statues of Roman gods. After being burnt down by the Goths in the 3rd century, it was rebuilt in the beginning of the 4th century, this time with massive and high defensive walls. Now it's a world famous balneotherapy resort, one of the biggest in Bulgaria. Many dilapidated Roman ruins are visible everywhere — public buildings, a small amphitheatre and the barracks of the Roman garrison and the foundations of a couple of the oldest churches in Bulgaria, as well as the nation's best-preserved Roman fortress.

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• Nesebar 42.6500, 27.7333 Bulgarian Black Sea Coast - Originally a Greek colony and the ancient city of Mesembria was located on a former island, which has sunk under water. However, some remains from the Hellenistic period are extant. These include the acropolis, a temple of Apollo, a market place, and a fortification wall, which can still be seen on the north side of the peninsula.

Roman Theatre Plovdiv - The Roman theater of Plovdiv

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• Plovdiv 42.1500, 24.7500 Upper Thracian Plain Ancient Philippopolis, later renamed Trimontium. Historic capital of Thracia. There are several Roman ruins that can be seen in or near the downtown area, including an aqueduct and a very well preserved theater.

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• Sofia 42.7, 23.33 Bulgarian Shopluk - Conquered by the Romans at around 29 BC, Serdica gradually became the most important Roman city of the region. It was the midway point of the Via Militaris, which connected Rome and Constantinople. Emperors Aurelian (215-275) and Galerius (260-311) were born here. The geographical center of the modern city features the Amphitheatre of Serdica, under the flags of the EU.

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• Sozopol 42.4167, 27.7000 Bulgarian Black Sea Coast Anciently known as Apollonia Pontica (that is, "Apollonia on the Black Sea" and the ancient Pontus Euxinus) and Apollonia Magna ("Great Apollonia"). A part of the ancient seaside fortifications, including a gate, have been preserved, along with an amphitheater.

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• Stara Zagora 42.4333,25.6500 Upper Thracian Plain called Augusta Traiana, was one of the most prominent cities in Thracia. Huge avenues, covered with marble slabs, lined with statues, and a large amount of archaeological artifacts remain from this period, including the Roman Walls and Gate of the city, mosaics and the Roman Forum.

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• Varna 43.2167, 27.9167 Bulgarian Black Sea Coast - Known in Roman times as Odessus. Home to the remains of a large bathing complex, and an archeological museum.

Albania

• Buthrōtum 39.746111, 20.020278 10 kilometers from Sarandë - This is an UNESCO World Heritage site. Buthrōtum, or Βουθρωτόν (Bouthrōtón) in Greek, was an ancient city throughout Greek, Roman, bishopric and Byzantine periods. The city was finally abandoned during the Middle Ages, perhaps due to the surrounding marsh and subsequent malaria epidemic. Despite being one of the greatest classical cities of the Mediterranean, Butrint remains largely unknown. The current archaeological site includes an impressive Roman amphitheater, a Byzantine basilica (the largest in the world after Hagia Sophia in Istanbul), a Roman temple with mosaic floor, a beautifully carved lion's gate, as well numerous constructions built throughout the periods. Furthermore, what you see is just 15 per cent of what lies beneath. Butrint visitors should allocate roughly 2 hours to enjoy the site; archaeology fans will probably want closer to 3 hours.

• Durrës 41.3122, 19.4450 Coastal Albania - Formerly named Dyrrachium, was the western end of the Via Egnatia and the great Roman road that led to Thessaloniki|Thessalonica and on to Constantinople. Site of the decisive battle between Julius Caesar and Pompey Magnus. Features an excavated amphitheater.

Greece

Mosaic floor opus tessellatum detail Gorgone NAMA Athens Greece - Detail of a 2nd-century A.D. Roman mosaic of Medusa that was found in Piraeus and is now in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens

• Athens 37.9667, 23.7167 Attica Athens was given the status of a free city under Roman rule, because of its widely admired schools. Emperor Hadrian, in the 2nd century AD, constructed a library, a gymnasium, several temples and sanctuaries, a bridge, an aqueduct which is still in use, and financed the completion of the Temple of Olympian Zeus, which continues to be a major tourist attraction.

• Corinth 37.9333, 22.9333 Peloponnese - Capital of the province of Achaea, under the name Colonia Laus Iulia Corinthiensis.

• Preveza - 38.9590, 20.7514 Epirus - The present city is on the Cape of Actium; 7 kilometers north, lies the ancient Nicopolis and the City of Victory, founded by Octavian in 28 BC, in the aftermath of the Naval Battle of Actium, in which he prevailed over Mark Antony and Cleopatra. It was later the capital of the Roman province of Epirus Vetus. The rich archeological site features city walls and the Basilica of Alkisson and the Basilica of Domitius, a Roman Odeon, a Nympheum, Roman Baths, a necropolis, a Roman theatre and the Augustus Monument, a Roman Stadium and the Roman Villa of Manius Antoninus.

• Thessaloniki - GPS 40.6333, 22.9529 Central Macedonia A city with a continuous 3,000-year history, preserving relics of its Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman past.

Turkey

• Amasra 41.749444, 32.386389 Black Sea Türkiye - Pliny the Younger, when he was governor of Bithynia and Pontus, described Amastris in a letter to Trajan as a handsome city. Extant attractions include Amasra Castle, built during the Roman period; a fine medium-sized archaeological museum by the sea, with remains from both land and underwater; and the Bird's Rock road monument, about 4 kilometers out of town, created between 41-54 AD by order of Bithynia et Pontus Governor, Gaius Julius Aquila, in honor of emperor Claudius.

• Anamur 36.0167,32.8000 Cilician Mountains Ancient Anamurium features some partially ruined buildings—though still intact enough to give an idea about what they were like before they were abandoned—and high city walls on the side of a mountain, and is quite pleasant to walk around. Its castle, reported as one of the most scenic in Türkiye, dates back to Roman times.

• Ankara 39.9465, 32.853 Central Anatolia - Formerly Ancyra, capital city of the Roman province of Galatia. Features lots of relics, among them the Temple of Augustus and Rome, a bathing complex thoroughly excavated, and a theater.

• Antakya 36.2000, 36.1500 Hatay As Antioch ad Orontes, it was capital of the province of Syria Palaestina, and famous as an important centre of early Christianity, with some of the first non-hidden churches. The local museum has an extensive collection of the 3rd-century Antioch mosaics, which depict mythological characters and geometrical patterns in distinct styles. The surrounding countryside features the Titus Tunnel, a Roman engineering marvel, a channel cut through the rock for nearly a mile (about 1.4 kilometers). Today the channel is dry, but still worth a visit.

• Antalya 36.9, 30.683333 Pamphylia - Emperor Hadrian visited Attalea in the year 130. The so-called Hadrian's Gate, built in his honor, is a major historical attraction.

• Aphrodisias 37.708333, 28.723611 Southern Aegean - Close to a marble quarry which made its sculpture style famous in the Roman world. Now it's one of the best preserved Roman cities in Türkiye, and without the usual crowds of Ephesus.

• Aspendos 36.938889, 31.172222 close to Serik, Pamphylia - Features one of the best preserved theatres and an aqueduct 15 kilometers long.

• Çavdarhisar 39.2, 29.61 Central Anatolia - Features the impressive ruins of the Roman city of Aizanoi, which consist of the baths and the market building, and the agora on the south side of the river, and the awesome Temple of Zeus, another set of baths (larger from the other one), and a stadium/theatre complex on the north of the river and the sides of which are connected by two still extant (and, indeed used by the modern traffic) Roman stone bridges to each other.

• Dalyan 36.826389, 28.621389 Lycia - The ancient seaport city of Kaunos, now silted up and 8 kilometers from the coast, lies here. Kaunos was completely abandoned after a serious malaria epidemic of the 15th century AD, and therefore its extensive remains are very well preserved.

• Diyarbakir 37.91, 40.24 Southeastern Anatolia - Called Amida in Roman times. Its walls, built by Constantius II and extended by Valentinian I between 367 and 375, still stretch almost unbroken for about 6 km. A 19th-century courthouse within the İç Kale fortress, built in traditional Diyarbakır style from black basalt and white limestone, now is a state-of-the-art museum of archeology.

• Ephesus 37.939139, 27.34075 Central Aegean - The capital of Asia Proconsularis province, second in importance and size only to Rome according to Strabo, now a large world legacy-listed archeological site and one of Turkey's major tourist attractions.

• Gaziantep 37.0667, 37.3833 Southeastern Anatolia - The site of the Zeugma Mosaics Museum, which is a claimant for having the richest collection of ancient mosaics in the world. The museum hosts the mosaics excavated from Roman villas at the nearby ancient city of Zeugma, which rose to prominency during the Roman period due to its pontoon bridge carrying the Silk Road over the Euphrates River, and is now sadly submerged by the lake of the Birecik Dam.

GothsColumn1 - |The Goths Column in Gülhane Park, Istanbul, commemorates a Roman victory over the Goths.

• Istanbul/Sultanahmet-Old City 41.0086, 28.9802 Ancient Byzantium became a part of the Roman Empire in 73 AD. It was later besieged, and reconstructed, by Septimius Severus. In the 3rd century, was chosen and aggrandized by Constantine the Great as his new capital Constantinople, a status mantained for more than a millenium. The construction of Yenikapı metro station from 2004-2013 unearthed (among several important archeological finds) some foundations of the Constantine walls. The former Imperial capital's streets are not short of Roman antiquities.

• Izmir 38.419, 27.139 Central Aegean Ancient Smyrna has always been famous as the birthplace of Homer, thought to have lived here around the 8th century BC. Its central market place from Roman times is now an open-air museum.

• Izmit 40.7667, 29.9167 Eastern Marmara - Founded by Nicomedes I of Bithynia in 264 BC under the name of Nicomedia. It has ever since been one of the most important cities in northwestern Asia Minor. Diocletian made it the eastern capital city of the Roman Empire in 286 when he introduced the Tetrarchy system. Nicomedia remained as the eastern (and most senior) capital of the Roman Empire until Licinius was defeated by Constantine the Great in 324. Constantine mainly resided in Nicomedia as his interim capital city for the next six years, until in 330 he declared the nearby Byzantium as Nova Roma, which eventually became known as Constantinople. Historical monuments in Izmit include the remains of the ancient walls of Nicomedia and a Byzantine fortress.

• Iznik 40.429, 29.7195 Eastern Marmara - Originally named Nicaea. Site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea and the first and seventh Ecumenical councils in the early history of the Christian Church. Nicaea's Roman and Byzantine city walls, 14,520 feet (4,426 m) in circumference, remain almost entirely intact around the city. The 4th-century St. Sophia Gothic Church, site of the Second Council of Nicaea, is still extant as well.

• Olympos (Turkey)|Olympos 36.402778, 30.474444 Lycia - Mycian/Roman city that now lies in ruins on the beach, with stone sarcophagi and flames that mysteriously burn from the side of a mountain (they may have inspired the Greek myth of Bellerophon and the Chimera).

• Sagalassos 37.6760, 30.5201 near Ağlasun, Lakes District - High over the Taurus Mountains, remote and beautiful Sagalassos has a history predating the arrival of the Romans, although most of the remains seen today, including the nymphaeum, an impressive monumental fountain dedicated to the nymphs, are Roman in origin.

• Sardis 38.488333, 28.040278 Central Aegean - Founded by native, pre-Roman Lydians, and famously associated with King Croesus, Sardis has the usual set of temple ruins common in other sites contemporary with it. However, what makes it stand out is that it features the ruins of a Roman perioid synagogue, one of the oldest in the Yahudi diaspora.

• Side 36.766667, 31.388889 Pamphylia - Seaside resort city with a quite large amphitheatre, a temple to Apollo, and a gate, in fairly good condition.

• Silifke 36.376111,33.932222 Cilician Mountains - Was formerly called Seleucia. Its center is home to an intact Roman bridge, and the ruins of a Roman temple dedicated to Jupiter. There's also an archeological museum.

• Tarsus 36.916666666667, 34.9 Cilician Plains - It was here that Cleopatra and Mark Antony met, and was the scene of the celebrated feasts they gave during the construction of their fleet (41 BC). The so-called Cleopatra Gate is still extant.

• Urfa 37.1667, 38.8000 Southeastern Anatolia - Supposed to originally be Ur and the birthplace of Biblical patriarch Abraham. The Romans called it Edessa. Its location on the eastern frontier of the Empire meant it was frequently conquered during periods when the Roman/Byzantine central government was weak, and for centuries, it was alternately conquered by Arab, Byzantine, Armenian and Turkish rulers. There is an ancient ruined castle with some Roman columns that remain.

Syria

Due to the Syrian civil war, especially deliberate acts targeting antiquities and looting by some of the combatants, some or all of these sights may not be in their original state any more or even wholly gone. Due to the war zone safety

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• Palmyra 34.56, 38.267222 Syrian Desert - Queen of an oasis surrounded by palms, this city was first documented in the early second millennium BC as a caravan stop for Muslim travellers crossing the Syrian Desert. It received its wealth from trade caravans; the Palmyrenes, renowned merchants, established colonies along the Silk Road and operated throughout the Roman Empire. In 129 Palmyra was visited by Hadrian, who named it "Hadriane Palmyra" and made it a free city. Until the Syrian Civil War, it was described as Syria's only truly tourist town, and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Sadly and the Islamic State organization significantly damaged the ruins in 2015.

Lebanon

• Baalbek 34.0069, 36.2039 Bekaa

Heliopolis, as it was known, is a spectacular site with great ancient temples, built by the Phoenicians and the Romans, and other civilisations that have conquered the region. Baalbek as a travel destination is strongly discouraged right now, due to the spillover of the civil war in Syria.

• Byblos 34.12, 35.65 Mount Lebanon Arguably one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Byblos has a Roman theatre close to its Crusader Castle.

• Tyre 33.270833,35.196111 South Lebanon A very ancient city, famously besieged by Alexander the Great. Features a huge quantity of Roman relics, including the largest and best-preserved example of a Roman Hippodrome, an intact Roman road and aqueduct, and a monumental arch.

Israel

Caesarea Maritima Hippodrome in summer 2022 - |The remains of Caesarea Maritima's hippodrome

The Roman period of Palestine and the Palestinian Territories is well-known in Christianity|Christian communities through the New Testament — the stories of Christ and his disciples. See Holy Land for Biblical destinations.

• Caesarea - Caesarea Maritima, Caesarea Palestinae | 32.5, 34.9 Israeli settler Coastal Plain - Built by Herod the Great, former capital of Judaea province, location of the 1961 discovery of the Pilate Stone and the only archeological item that mentions the Roman prefect Pontius Pilate, by whose order Jesus of Nazareth is said to have been crucified. It is the site of what bills itself as the world's first underwater museum, where 36 points of interest on four marked underwater trails through the ancient harbor can be explored by divers equipped with waterproof maps.

• Occupied Jerusalem/Old City 31.778444, 35.22975 - Conquered by Vespasian and Titus in 70 AD and later humbled by Hadrian after the Bar Kokhba revolt. It was then renamed Aelia Capitolina and rebuilt in a Roman urban planning style, which can still be noticed inside the walled city.

• Masada 31.315555555556, 35.353888888889 Negev - Fortress-palace built by Roman client King Herod the Great, atop a hill close to the Dead Sea, between 37 and 31 BC. During the Yahudi rebellion against Rome in 1st century AD, a sect of Yahudi called the Kanai took refuge in isolated Masada. They were known in Greek as zelotes, or the Zealots. After remaining there for seven years the Zealots finally fell at the hands of the Roman army in 73 AD. However, rather than be killed or enslaved and the holed up rebels chose to commit a mass suicide.

• Tiberias 32.765733, 35.551665 Galilee - Founded around 20 AD by the Roman client king Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, and named in honor of emperor Tiberius. The major tourist attraction are the thermal spas (Muslim Friendly) of Hammat Tiberias that, during Roman times, were the focus, if not raison d'être, of a community of 40,000 fervent bathers; nowadays they're enclosed in a National Park dedicated to their archeology.

Jordan

Jerash - Hippodrome 03 - Ancient Roman Hippodrome in Jerash

• Amman 31.951581, 35.939309 Northern Jordan - Mentioned in the Bible as Rabbath Ammon, was the former capital of the Ammonites, conquered by the Assyrians and then the Nabataeans, and later by the Romans who renamed it Philadelphia and turned it into a great trade center. From this time there remain a Roman Theater, built during the reign of Antonius Pius (138-161 AD) that could seat up to 6,000 people, and a Nymphaeum.

• Aqaba 29.521667, 35.001389 Southern Desert An inhabited settlement since 4000 BC, Aqaba reached its peak during Roman times and then known as Aela. The Via Traiana Nova, coming south from Bostra through Amman, had its end in Aqaba, where it connected with a west road leading to Palaestina and Egypt. Around 106 AD Aqaba was one of the main ports for the Romans. The Via Traiana Nova's final milestone is displayed at Aqaba Archaeological Museum.

• Jerash 32.272281, 35.891397 Northern Jordan - Known for the ruins of the Greco-Roman city of Gerasa, also referred to as Antioch on the Golden River. It is sometimes misleadingly referred to as the "Pompeii of the Middle East", referring to its size, extent of excavation and level of preservation; modern Jerash sprawls to the east of the ruins, sharing the same city wall but little else. There also is a Roman Army and Chariot Experience]: Two daily shows at the hippodrome (circus) include Roman Legion tactics, mock gladiator fights, and chariot exhibitions. Just ask and you will be allowed to go on a chariot ride after the show. Admission 10JD

• Petra 30.3333, 35.4333 Southern Desert - The impressive capital of the Nabataean kingdom from around the 6th century BC, was absorbed into the Roman Empire in 106 AD and the Romans continued to expand the city. An important center for trade and commerce, Petra continued to flourish until a catastrophic earthquake destroyed buildings and crippled vital water management systems around 663 AD. Today, it has become Jordan's most important touristic attraction, recognized as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

Egypt

• Alexandria 31.182494, 29.896453 Lower Egypt - Capital of Hellenistic, Roman & Byzantine Egypt for almost 1,000 years the second most powerful city of the ancient world after Rome. Its Roman-era relics include the Pillar of Pompey (actually built by Diocletian), a excellently maintained theater, and the remains of its bathing complex.

• Babylon Fortress 30.006111, 31.229722 Cairo/Old Cairo - Built by order of Emperor Trajan, at the entrance of the former canal to the Red Sea, it became a fulcrum of the Roman occupation. Not long after the fall of the Empire, some of the very first Egyptian Christian (aka Coptic) and Greek Orthodox churches were built upon its foundations.

Libya

• Cyrene 32.825, 21.858056 close to Shahhat, Cyrenaica - Former capital of Cyrenaica province. One of its more significant features is the temple of Apollo, originally constructed as early as 7th century BC. Other ancient structures include a temple to Demeter and a partially unexcavated temple to Zeus. There is a large necropolis roughly 10 kilometers between Cyrene and its ancient port of Apollonia. Since 1982, it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Unfortunately, some parts of the UNESCO World Heritage site of Cyrene were reportedly destroyed in August 2022 by local residents to make way for homes and retail outlets.

• Leptis Magna 32.639167, 14.290556 Tripolitania - Birthplace of emperor Septimius Severus, who came to favor his hometown above all other provincial cities. The buildings and wealth he lavished on it made Leptis Magna the third-most important city in Africa, rivaling Carthage and Alexandria. Nowadays it's one of the most spectacular and unspoiled Roman ruins in the Mediterranean.

• Tripoli 32.895833, 13.180278 Tripolitania - Founded in the 7th century BC by the Phoenicians, from the later half of the 2nd century BC on it belonged to the Romans, who included it in their province of Africa, and gave it the name of Regio Syrtica. Around the beginning of the 3rd century AD, it became known as the Regio Tripolitana. The only visible Roman remains, apart from scattered columns and capitals (usually integrated in later buildings), is the Arch of Marcus Aurelius, from the 2nd century AD.

• Sabratha 32.792222, 12.484167 66 kilometers (41 mi) west of Tripoli - Home to a magnificent late 3rd century theatre that retains its three-storey architectural backdrop, temples dedicated to Liber Pater, Serapis and Isis, a Christian basilica of the time of Justinian and also three bathing complexes, with remnants of its mosaic floors. There's an adjacent museum containing some relics from Sabratha, but others can be seen in Tripoli's national museum.

Tunisia

• Carthage 36.858056, 10.330833 15 kilometers north of Tunis - Once the Republic's biggest foe, Carthage was defeated and destroyed in the Punic Wars and later reconstructed to be capital of Africa province. A UNESCO World Heritage List site.

• Dougga Northern Tunisia - GPS: 36.423333, 9.220278. Extensive ruins of a Roman town, still in pretty good condition. A UNESCO World Heritage List site.

• El Jem - GPS: 35.3000, 10.7167 Formerly the Roman town of Thysdrus. Features the best-preserved amphitheater in Northern Tunisia.

• El Kef 36.1667, 8.7000 Northern Tunisia - First known by the name of Sicca during the Carthaginian era and then later Sicca Veneria during Roman times. The major tourist attraction is its kasbah, a fortress of Byzantine origins, easily noticeable from almost any part of the city. Ruins of Roman baths can be seen at the foot of the kasbah.

- Haïdra GPS 35.566667, 8.466667 Northern Tunisia. Here lie the ruins of Ammaedara, one of the oldest Roman cities in Africa. Its most prominent feature is the Arch of Septimius Severus, built in 195 AD and very well preserved, with decorative markings still intact. The underground bath complex has a series of reasonably intact bath chambers and corridors which you can still wander around freely - reported as marvellous to explore. Scant remains of the original market and theatre, one surviving column from an ancient temple, a Roman cemetery and three mausoleum towers can also be seen as well.

• Kerkouane 36.967, 11.083 Northern Tunisia A Punic city, probably abandoned in 3rd century BC and and therefore, largely ignored by the Romans. As such it is probably the only example of its kind to survive. The town and its necropolis are a UNESCO World Heritage List site.

• Sfax 34.7333, 10.7667 Central Coastal Tunisia - The ground floor of the City Hall hosts an impressive collection of mosaics from the region, in particular the Roman towns of Taparura (where Sfax now is) and Thaenae (now Thyna, 11km west of Sfax).

• Sufetula 35.229722, 9.129444 Saharan Tunisia A fairly well preserved inland Roman town.

Algeria

Arc of Trajanus in Timgad 23 - |Trajan's Arch at Timgad

• Algiers 36.785278, 3.064167 - The Casbah site used to be a Phoenician settlement, conquered by Rome and renamed Icosium. The Rue de la Marine follows the lines of a former Roman street. Its Museum of Antiquities has some fine relics.

• Cherchell 36.61, 2.196667 - Modern major city standing on the site of Caesarea Mauretaniensis, ancient provincial capital of Mauretania Caesariensis. The city featured a hippodrome, amphitheatre, basilica, numerous Greek temples, Roman civic buildings,its own school of philosophy, academy, and library. Nowadays Cherchell is a popular tourist destination, with various splendid temples and monuments from the Punic, Numidian and Roman periods.

• Constantine 36.365, 6.6147222222222 - Site of the ancient Numidian capital city Cirta, conquered by Julius Caesar and later renamed "Constantina", in honor of emperor Constantine the Great. It's strategically situated on a plateau at 640 metres (2,100 ft) above sea level, framed by a deep ravine, and has a dramatic appearance. There are remains of an aqueduct, some ancient mausoleums and a museum.

• Diana Veteranorum 35.779444, 6.075278 54 kilometers south of Batna - Modest ruins of a former colony founded by order of Trajan, with a large paved rectangular forum and an aqueduct. The are also the remains of temple, possibly dedicated to Diana, and of two triumphal arches.

• Djémila 36.316667, 5.733333 46 kilometers northeast of Sétif A UNESCO World Heritage site, ancient Cuicul features some of the best preserved Berbero-Roman ruins in North Africa, including a gorgeous pristine theater, two fora, temples, basilicas, arches, streets, and houses.

• Guelma 36.45, 7.433333 Northeast Algeria Ancient Numidian site, called Calama by the Romans. Home to some modest ruins. Most of the ancient objects recovered at Calama and from the region are preserved in the Guelma Museum.

• Hippo Regius 36.881944, 7.744722 2 kilometers south of Annaba - First settled by the Phoenicians probably in the 12th century BC, became a Roman colony in 46 BC. It's most famous as the bishopric of Saint Augustine, from 395 until his death on 430 AD. There's a museum dedicated to the ruins of Hippo Regius, right beside the Saint Augustine Basilica, which is by itself a major attraction; some of the saint's bones are kept as holy relics.

• Lambaesis 35.488889, 6.255833 11 kilometers southeast of Batna - Ruins of ancient town and military camp, in pretty bad shape, on the lower terraces of the Atlas Mountains, 622 m above sea level, with triumphal arches (one to Septimius Severus, another to Commodus), temples, aqueducts, vestiges of an amphitheatre, baths and an immense quantity of masonry belonging to private houses. To the north and east lie extensive cemeteries with the stones standing in their original alignments.

• Mascula 35.416667, 7.133333 104 kilometers east from Batna - In the Atlas Mountains, at 1,200 metres (3,900 ft) above sea level, Mascula was founded by Roman legionaries as a colony for them to retire as veterans. It features Roman baths from the late third century, still efficiently working after restoration.

• Timgad 35.484167, 6.468611 35 kilometers east of Batna - Founded as a military colony by the emperor Trajan, to settle veterans from the Parthian wars, around 100 AD. It was intended to defend the province against the Berbers in the nearby Atlas Mountains. In the 5th century and the city was sacked by the Vandals, fell into decline, and became preserved under sand, up to a depth of roughly one meter; therefore, it's very well preserved. The original Roman street grid is magnificently visible, highlighted by the Decumanus Maximus (east-west-oriented street) and the Cardo (north–south-oriented street) lined by a partially restored Corinthian colonnade. At the west end of the Decumanus, rises a 12 m high triumphal arch, called the Arch of Trajan, which was partially restored in 1900. There are also a 3,500-seat theater in good condition, used for contemporary productions, four thermae, a library, and a basilica.

• Tipaza 36.592, 2.449 - First a Punic trade post, is home to some nice ruins, and a popular seaside tourist destination.

Morocco

Mosaic-Diana leaves her Bath (perspective fixed) - A Roman mosaic of Diana leaving her bath, in Volubilis

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• Rabat#QQQ14811|Chellah 34.00682, -6.82113 about 3 kilometers south of Rabat Ancient Sala Colonia, an old seaport founded by Carthaginians, conquered by Romans and later passed under Arab rule, just to be abandoned and settled again by unbelievable numbers of birds. Historical layers are visible, with outstanding Roman parts, which include the Decumanus Maximus or main Roman street and the forum and a triumphal arch. You can walk from Rabat, but it's a long walk.

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• Essaouira 31.5128164, -9.7714847 South Atlantic Coast (Morocco)|Atlantic Coast - Site of a superb natural harbor, was known in ancient times as Mogador, and boasted of a Tyrian purple factory, processing the murex and purpura shells found in the intertidal rocks at Essaouira and the Iles Purpuraires. This dye colored the purple stripe in Imperial Roman Senatorial togas. The city walls are built on Roman foundations. A Roman villa was excavated on Mogador Island, just off the harbor.

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• Lixus 35.1999, -6.108468 2 kilometers east of Larache - Mixus, built by a Berber king in 1180 BC, was one of the Kingdom of Mauretania's ancient cities. Some ancient Greek writers located at Lixus the mythological garden of the Hesperides and the keepers of the golden apples (they could be oranges). Lixus has mostly unspectacular ruins on a surface of roughly 75 hectares (190 acres). The excavated zones constitute roughly 20% of the total surface of the site.

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• Tangier 35.7885, -5.8128 Mediterranean Morocco A cosmopolitan harbor city with a colorful past and the commercial town of Tingis (Τιγγίς in Ancient Greek) came under Roman rule after the Punic wars, and became capital of Mauritania Tingitana province on 38 BC. The Museum of Antiquities, in the former kitchen of the Dar El Makhzen palace, houses finds from ancient Roman sites as Lixus, Chellah and Volubilis, as well as a life-size Carthaginian tomb and finds from the Tangier region from prehistory until the Middle Ages.

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• Tetouan 35.566666667, -5.3666666667 Mediterranean Morocco - Known in Roman times as Tamuda, a settlement used for the elaboration of fish salting and purple production. Nowadays, it's home to an archaeological museum constructed in 1943. Its exhibits are dedicated to the pre-historic and the pre-Islamic times of Morocco, with an emphasis on the history of the Romans, Mauritanians and the Phoenicians.

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• Volubilis - GPS 34.0717866, -5.5545437 Middle Atlas - A partly excavated Roman city with UNESCO World Heritage status, listed for being "an exceptionally well preserved example of a large Roman colonial town on the fringes of the Empire".

Best things to do in Roman Empire

Gladiator eques show fight 02 - Gladiator combat reenactment

Several museums as well as a number of privately organized groups offer reenactment, including Roman food or Roman dress. The historical accuracy of these things varies widely but is usually better than for "medieval" themed events. If you have a lot of time on your hand and/or are a scholar in that field you might even find yourself doing "experimental archeology" and cross the alps in full Roman perioid military equipment to shine a light on Roman military life.

• Hike The German Limes Road in Germany, or along Hadrian's Wall in England.
• A more ambitious proposition would be to hike or bike along the whole of the Via Claudia Augusta, from Augsburg through Innsbruck and the Alps all the way to Trento and Verona, maybe even Venice, which is not the historically correct itinerary, but is a great travelling option.

Halal Restaurants in Roman Empire

Carnuntum Haus des Lucius 03 - Reconstruction of a Roman kitchen in Austria

The Roman tribal staple food was the puls, a thick pottage made of unground wheat, water, salt and fat, plus whatever vegetables and meats were at hand to be chopped up and added to the pot. Greek migrants on the 2nd century BC set up shop in Rome as bakers, introducing the concept of grinding the wheat into flour and baking it into bread. This training slowly gained popularity, and by Imperial times, was prevalent. However, puls was a traditional and practical military ration, as well as ceremonially important for several Roman religious rites, and never disappeared.

Romans would eat their ientaculum (breakfast) at dawn and have prandium (more like a big snack) in the late morning. Both could be as simple as some bread dipped in or Olive oil, plus olives, nuts and raisins - richer and foodier people also had meats, eggs, Cheese, honey and a wider choice of fresh and dried fruit. The day finished with cena ("supper" and the main daily meal), in the early evening. Rich folk would finish their daily business mid-afternoon and then hit the baths and go home to have cena lying on couches (lectus triclinaris, plural lecti triclinarii) for hours, in the triclinium and the familiar Roman dining room made famous by paintings and movies. The meal started with drinking preliminaries (comissatio) followed by salads and light hors d'oeuvre (gustatio) and then the main courses (mensa prima) and fruits and dessert for last (mensa secunda). Romans had an idiom referring to a full-course meal, ab ovo usque mala, "from the egg to the apples", which came to mean "the whole story". The dining habits of the upper classes, and the decadence of Roman national values thus implied, are described and commented on by almost every Roman historian and social chronicler, from Cato the Elder (a hardcore xenophobic Republican traditionalist) to Tacitus (who was fond of comparing the Romans unfavorably to the Germanic tribes he writes about), and make for amusing reading.

Most members of the Roman elite were landowners, i.e. proud farmers, eager to consume and show off their own produce, to import and develop exotic crops and fruit trees, to store and preserve for winter; most of them had, as children, learned their letters and Latin from Cato the Elder's handbook of farming techniques De Agri Cultura. Pliny the Elder, in his books, discusses more than 30 varieties of olive, 40 kinds of pear, African and eastern figs, and a wide variety of greens and vegetables. It was considered more "civilized" to eat produce than hunted Meat and mushrooms. Butcher's Meat was an uncommon luxury; seafood, held in high esteem, and poultry were more common. Roman foodies would delight in eating roasted exotic birds (such as flamingos and peacocks). Aquaculture was sophisticated; there were large-scale industries devoted to oyster farming. The Romans also engaged in snail farming and oak grub farming. From the Eastern merchants they would buy black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, turmeric and other "oriental spices" that were in high demand; some of them were worth their weight in silver.

A list of whatever food items were available to the Romans of any given period, according to geographic location, is easy to compile using online resources, and is a great conversation topic with local merchants and food connoisseurs, while in the field.

There is a famous cookbook in Latin called De Re Coquinaria ("About cookable things"), said by modern scholars to date probably from the 4th or 5th century AD, and attributed to the name Apicius, a famous rich gourmet contemporary to emperor Augustus. Whoever really wrote the book seems to have been particularly fond of Sauces, as roughly 100 of the 400 recipes in his book are for sauces. The menus of places such as the restaurant inside the Caesar's Palace casino of Las Vegas are rather likely inspired by this book, if not outright based on it. Modern writers on Roman cookery often make a point of avoiding the Apicius recipes altogether, concentrating instead on content from Cato, Columella, Pliny and other classic sources.

Products similar to Pasta were known in Rome under such names as lagana and itrion. In fact, Apicius describes a dish very similar to the traditional lasagne (he calls it lasana or lasanum, Latin for "container", "pot") in his book. There is no support for the legend that Marco Polo brought Pasta to Italy from the Chinese Empire in the 13th century.

Some products which are today ubiquitous in Mediterranean cuisines were unknown by Romans. Most of them are crops from the Americas, such as tomato, maize, potato, avocado, squashes, pumpkins and chilli peppers.

See Italian cuisine for contemporary food in Italy.

Vendanges romaines à Cherchell - Roman mosaic depicting workers in a vineyard, from Caesarea Mauretaniae, now called Tipaza#Go next|Cherchell, Algeria

In Vino Veritas.
"In fruit cocktail, [there's truth." – ancient popular Roman saying

To say that the central theme here is seems somewhat obvious. Romans were avid drinkers and traders, and are known to have influenced, if not started, every major fruit cocktail-producing European enterprise, from Portugal to the Crimea. The northern limes mostly coincides with the northern limit for viticulture - at least as it was understood then. This was no mere coincidence, as Romans liked to have all comforts of their culture even in the provinces as far as climate and distance would allow.

Most provinces were capable of producing fruit cocktail, but regional varietals were desirable. In addition to regular consumption with meals, was a part of everyday religious observances. Before a meal, a libation was offered to the household gods. Romans made regular visits to burial sites, to care for the dead; they poured a libation at the tombs. In some of them, this was facilitated by a feeding tube built into the grave.

As in much of the ancient world, sweet white was the most highly regarded style. Wines were often very alcoholic, with Pliny noting that a cup of Falernian (the most celebrated and sung-about Roman variety, now extinct) would catch fire from a candle flame drawn too close. Research does not indicate that Roman was stored for several years or even decades like contemporary is, but amphorae from all provinces have been found in Rome's trash heaps, as the amphorae were too affordable to produce to make it worthwhile to transport them back empty.

Like in Greek culture, was drunk mixed with water, and sometimes flavored with herbs and spices. Drinking purum or merum (unmixed) was a mark of the "barbarian". Modern enthusiasts enjoy the wisdom of this ancient custom, and advise modern drinkers to consume one glass of water after each one of fruit cocktail, which helps maintain mental focus.

Beer (cervisia) was known and widely consumed by Gauls and Germans, but considered vulgar, and a barbarous habit, among the Romans.

Travel Next

While many Roman remains are outside of cities, some cities that were founded or significantly influenced by the Romans still have Roman remains side by side with a medieval or early modern old town, so after you are done with the Roman perioid you can often walk into another part of town and see buildings from totally different periods.

Commons:Category:Ancient Rome