Aquae Flaviae (or ''Aquæ Flaviæ'') is the ancient

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

city and former bishopric (now a Latin Catholic

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

) of Chaves, a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

in the Portuguese district of Vila Real.

History

The northwest peninsular region is an area of hot springs and Roman settlements linked to the exploitation of valuable natural resources.Diana Fonseca Sorribas (2012), p.519 Aquae Flaviae was the principal '' municipium civitas'' in the northwest (from epigraphic findings) implanted in the Trás-os-Montes, on a small hill on the banks of the River Tâmega, in the

Roman province The Roman provinces (Latin: ''provincia'', pl. ''provinciae'') were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was rule ...

Gallaecia Gallaecia, also known as Hispania Gallaecia, was the name of a Roman province in the north-west of Hispania, approximately present-day Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Norte, Portugal, northern Portugal, Asturias and León (province), Leon and the lat ...

. This was a fertile area, where hot springs abound, in addition to a mining region from which gold is extracted. It is also located in a strategic place between the Roman cities of

Bracara Braga ( , ; cel-x-proto, Bracara) is a city and a municipality, capital of the northwestern Portuguese district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality has a resident population of 193,333 inhabitants (i ...

and Asturica, as well as the mining districts of Três Minas and Jales, located southwest of the ''

civitates In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (; plural ), according to Cicero in the time of the late Roman Republic, was the social body of the , or citizens, united by law (). It is the law that binds them together, giving them responsibilities () on t ...

''. Little is known of the urban fabric although there are some important points: an aqueduct supplied water from a reservoir and dam in Abobeleira, there was a theatre/amphitheatre, vestiges of a necropolis and sections of a wall.Diana Fonseca Sorribas (2012), p.520 With respect to the thermal activity, the lack of archaeological excavations means that little is known as of the alleged ancient

Roman baths In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large imperial bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed in great numbers throughout ...

. Modern excavations have begun to uncover the remains of another Roman baths structure associated with a hot spring in ''Largo do Arrabalde'' consisting of large pavement slabs and a block of ''

opus caementicium Roman concrete, also called , is a material that was used in construction in ancient Rome. Roman concrete was based on a hydraulic-setting cement. It is durable due to its incorporation of pozzolanic ash, which prevents cracks from spreading. B ...

'' associated with a thermal spring. These are the first known thermal remains known to be located within Chaves. Further, within the ''civitates'' there are many complicated votive epigraphs which seem to relate to thermal worship. There are two inscriptions dedicated to nymphs, a lost inscription dedicated to Tutela and another to Isis, that suggest a thermal cult. Architecturally, the most notable feature of this city, is the bridge of Trajan over the Tâmega River, whose existence marked a period of exceptional development of the city. Functioning as a crossroads, it controlled the routes to the mining districts. The remains of two epigraphic inscriptions are located on the bridge, commemorating the construction or remodelling by

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...

Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...

, as well as another that aroused various interpretations, the ''Padrão dos Povos''. The ''Padrão dos Povos'' mentions the civitates dependant of Aquae Flaviae: Aquiflavienses, Avobrigenses, Bibali, Coelerni,

Equaesi The Equaesi were an ancient Celtic tribe of Gallaecia, who lived in the north of modern Portugal, between the provinces of Minho and Trás-os-Montes, near the border of modern Galicia (Spain). See also *Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula ...

Interamici The Interamici or Interamnici were a pre-Roman people or tribe, one of the Gallaeci tribes, living between some areas of modern southern Galicia (Spain) (in part of southern Ourense Province), and some areas of northern Trás-os-Montes, modern nor ...

Limici The Limici were an ancient Celtic tribe of Gallaecia, living in the swamps of the river Lima, in the border region between Minho (Portugal) and Galicia (Spain). See also *Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula This is a list of the pre-Rom ...

, Naebisoci, Querquerni and

Tamagani The Tamagani were an ancient Celtic tribe of Gallaecia, living in the north of modern Portugal, in the province of Trás-os-Montes, in the area of Chaves, near the river Tâmega. See also *Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula This is a ...

, as well as the Roman Legio VII Gemina Felix legion. Aquae Flaviae was founded by Rome, although the details of that founding remain obscure.

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...

suggests that it was founded in

Turodi The Turodi were an ancient Celtic tribe of Gallaecia, living in the north of modern Portugal, in the province of Trás-os-Montes and border areas in Galicia (Spain). See also *Pre-Roman peoples of the Iberian Peninsula This is a list of the pr ...

territory, a theory that has been strengthened by the existence of epigraphic evidence documenting the presence of Turodi.Diana Fonseca Sorribas (2012), p.521

References

Notes

Sources

* {{authority control Chaves, Portugal Catholic titular sees in Europe Roman towns and cities in Portugal de:Aquae Flaviae it:Aquae Flaviae