The Roman city of Italica in the province of Seville

Tucked away in modern-day Santiponce, just outside the city of Seville, lies Italica - a hidden gem of Seville's past. This city, not far from the native Iberian town of the Turdetani, held a strategic position close to the Guadalquivir River. Italica was founded in 206 BC by Publius Cornelius Scipio as a settlement for his Italian veterans, a mix of socii and Roman citizens, and therefore named Italica after its inhabitants. This city, remarkable for its Roman urban planning, boasted a Hippodamian street pattern, public buildings, and a forum at its center.

Italica's amphitheatre was the third largest in the Roman Empire at the time, seating 25,000 spectators. It thrived especially under the patronage of Hadrian, who expanded the city northwards as the nova urbs. He added temples, including the enormous and unique Traianeum in the centre of the city to venerate his predecessor and adopted father, and rebuilt public buildings. While the original vetus urbs lies under the present town of Santiponce, the nova urbs remains unusually well-preserved with its cobbled streets and mosaic floors still in situ.

Regular excavation of Italica began in the 19th century, and many significant finds, such as the marble statue of Trajan, are now exhibited in the Seville Archaeological Museum. According to some authors, Italica may also have been the birthplace of the emperor Theodosius I and of his eldest son Arcadius.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons