Lucentum ( grc-gre, Λούκεντον, ''Loúkenton''), called Lucentia by

Pomponius Mela Pomponius Mela, who wrote around AD 43, was the earliest Roman geographer. He was born in Tingentera (now Algeciras) and died AD 45. His short work (''De situ orbis libri III.'') remained in use nearly to the year 1500. It occupies less ...

, is the

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 lette ...

predecessor of the city of

Alicante Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in t ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. Particularly, it refers to the archaeological site in which the remains of this ancient settlement lie, at a place known as ''El Tossal de Manises'', in the neighborhood of Albufereta.

Ancient history

Diodorus Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ; 1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which su ...

ascribes Lucentum's foundation to the Carthaginian leader Hamilcar Barcas. As a Mediterranean and Iberian commercial center, it had trading contacts with

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

Phoenicia Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their histor ...

, and the southern Iberian city of

Tartessos Tartessos ( es, Tarteso) is, as defined by archaeological discoveries, a historical civilization settled in the region of Southern Spain characterized by its mixture of local Paleohispanic and Phoenician traits. It had a proper writing system ...

, absorbing some of their influences. This unique mixture gave rise to a culture called Contestani by

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ' ...

and Strabo. Its ruins include various distinctly Carthaginian features. The Punic town was known to the

Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...

as the "White Promontory" or "White Citadel", variously given as ( grc-gre, Ἄκρα Λευκά), (), and ()."Roman Policy in Spain", ''Harvard Studies in Classical Philology'',
209

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

translated the second sense of the Greek name into Latin, calling the settlement . The Greek probably translated the site's Punic name, although some prefer to imagine it transcribes an Iberian placename involving the words ''lug'' ("water") and ''cant'' ("cliff"). The city enjoyed its peak between the 1st century BC and the 1st century AD, and the majority of the city's remains bear a Roman stamp. The town was refounded as Lucentum (from Latin ', referring to the same geographical feature, the "white promontory") after P. Cornelius Scipio conquered the area in the course of the Second Punic War. Over the years it gained a thoroughly Roman character, complete with baths, forums, temples, sewers, etc. It was one of the major cities of the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis. It entered into a decline in the 2nd century and was effectively abandoned by the end of the 3rd century. The chief cause of this decline was competition from the neighboring city of Ilici (today's

Elche Elche ( ca-valencia, Elx) is a city and municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2014 data, Elche has a population of 228,647 inhabitants,Antonio Valcárcel Pío de Saboya, suggested that the ruins of ''Tossal de Manises'', which he personally had excavated for a number of years, were in fact Lucentum. This contradicted the common wisdom at the time, which held that the Roman city was well outside the town of Alicante. Later, the ruins were excavated by Lafuente and Figueras, who found the more ancient Carthaginian city. In the 1930s they were again excavated by a Professor Belda, around which time a necropolis was discovered during road construction. Plànol hipotètic de Lucentum (segle I d

The site contains evidence of both the Iberian and the Roman epochs, although in terms of material recovered and ruins remaining the Roman influences (especially from the 1st century AD and afterwards) predominate. The Roman city was constructed over the Iberian one, of which practically nothing remains except for the walls. The lower level is contemporary with a necropolis excavated in the 1930s to make way for a road, and whose materials are now housed in the Archaeological Museum of Alicante. Among these, a number of cauldrons stand out as well as Iberian ceramics decorated with geometric shapes, birds, and fish, sculptures, jewelry, amulets of

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

origin, terracotta ware, and weapons. Of the jewelry recovered, a type of pendant, possibly for masculine use, is quite notable as it suggests that there was a local workshop whose production made its way into other local burial sites. Finally, the "Kore de Alicante", currently housed in the

Archaeological Museum of Catalonia The Archaeology Museum of Catalonia ( ca, Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya, MAC) is an archaeological museum with five venues that exposes the most important archaeological collection of Catalonia, focusing on prehistoric times and ancient histo ...

could have come from this site. In the post-war period, the site (located in a privileged place, with an excellent view of the ancient lagoon and bay) was in danger of disappearing, a victim of real estate speculation. However, efforts by those in favor of its preservation, most notably the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

archaeologist Solveig Nordström, succeeded in defending the site. This effort culminated in the 1961 designation as an "Artistic and Historic Monument", which afforded some legal protection. Unfortunately, the preservation movement could not stop much development around the site, with the result that the ruins are surrounded by tall buildings and is in no way "visually pure". Despite the legal protections which had been won for the ruins, they suffered from neglect and exposure for a number of years, until efforts were finally made in the 1990s to conserve them. This resulted in recent construction, directed by the architect Rafael Pérez Jiménez and the archaeologist Manuel Olcina Doménech, which aims at the definitive and irreversible conservation of what remains of the ruins. Such a recuperation represents a cultural milestone for Alicante.

Lucentum today

Currently, one can visit the archaeological site, which covers an area of some . The most noticeable features are the remains of the fortifying wall (including the foundations of the pre-Roman defensive towers), the baths, the forum, part of the Muslim necropolis, and a multitude of houses. In addition, a part of the ''Tossal de Manisses'' is currently being excavated, which it is hoped will increase the size and importance of the site. The influence of Lucentum is also present in the culture of the area, with many businesses, associations, and sports clubs in the Alicante area bearing the name of the ancient city.

References

Citations

Bibliography

*Conesa, Enrique Llobregat. ''Ilucant : un cuarto de siglo investigación histórico-arqueológica en tierras de Alicante''. 1991 *Conesa, Enrique Llobregat, Manuel H. Olcina Domenech, Rafael Pérez Jiménez. ''Trabajos de consolidación en la ciudad ibero-romana de Lucentum (Tossal de Manises, Alicante)''. *Díaz, Alicia Fernández. ''Algunos restos pictóricos de la ciudad de Lucentum''
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*Ibanez, Miguel. ''Estudio paleopatológico de las cremaciones procedentes de la necrópolis ibérica de la Albufereta'' (Alicante)
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{{Authority control Alicante Phoenician colonies in Spain Roman towns and cities in Spain Former populated places in Spain Tourist attractions in Spain Populated places in Hispania Tarraconensis Bien de Interés Cultural landmarks in the Province of Alicante

Ancient history

Lucentum today

See also

External links

References

Citations

Bibliography