My wife and I spent a week exploring southern Portugal by car. One of our intended stops was the college city of Coimbra. While reviewing the sights around Coimbra, I noted a Roman archaeologic site, Conimbriga, just 17 km away. We enjoy seeing the footprints of the Romans, so we were happy to make the diversion to this pretty and interesting place.
Conimbriga is Portugal’s largest Roman site and was founded in the first century B.C. at the site of an existing Celtic colony. The city developed into a strategic outpost for the Roman Empire and was at its prime in the 1st and 2nd centuries A.D. when it had around 10,000 inhabitants. The town fell to invading Germanic forces in 468 AD and many of its inhabitants fled to nearby Coimbra. The site was abandoned for many centuries with excavation and restoration work not starting until the late 19th century. To date only between 10 – 20% of Conimbriga has been excavated, so there are likely many wonderful treasures yet to be uncovered.
A visit to the site shows extensive ruins many of which are surprisingly well preserved. These include foundations of homes (some very large and spacious, like the House of Cantaber), a bathhouse, forum, columns and pillars, and a large defensive wall built in the 3rd century. Some of the details that caught my eye are included in this post.
(Above are some of the highlights of rambling around Conimbriga)
I thought the most amazing feature of Conimbriga is its many beautifully crafted and well-preserved mosaic floors. Many of these date to the 2nd and 3rd century and are a testimony to quality craftsmanship and the wealth and importance of the community. The colors and intactness of the floor mosaics were really impressive, as you can see from the following photos:
(A sampling of the floor mosaics in Conimbriga)
One particular home stood out during our exploration of these ruins, which was featured in last weekend’s One Clue Mystery. It is the Casa dos Repuxos (House of Fountains) and was recognized by Master Travel Sleuth, George G — congratulations as always, George!
(One Clue Mystery photo)
The House of Fountains was discovered in 1939 and subsequently excavated over the following decades. It is thought to date to around 200 AD, and has beautiful mosaics, as well as functional fountains (which were restored in the 1950s).
(Some details from the House of Fountains)
The fountains and mosaics were once part of the courtyard of a magnificent home. Today these features are protected by an elevated walkway and an overhead roof.
There is a small but interesting Museum on the site which opened in 1962 and which is worth exploring. We visited the museum before we explored the ruins and that worked out quite well. The displays of life in Conimbriga are nicely presented and vary from Roman glass to weapons to everyday tools and implements:
(Displays at the museum at Conimbriga)
Overall an interesting and worthwhile destination.
