If you are a fan of history and you want to know all about the origin of the city, then here we provide you with this brief archeological tour in Valencia, in which you will discover the remains of civilization that took place in the city of the Turia river. It is always the perfect time to participate in tours in Valencia, to discover the city.
We start off with the Roman era, which is followed up by the Islamic era. Last but not least, we end the tour with the christian era. If you don’t know what to do in Valencia, this is your plan!
Valencia was a place strategically located, because of its position next to the Mediterranean Sea where Valencia crossed with Via Augusta, which connected Rome and Baetica (Andalusia).
On the floor of the square, you can find the first symbol of the city of Valencia: a horn of plenty for the god Jupiter.
Plaza de la Virgen was a Roman forum, the nucleus of the city and the place where the most important buildings of the city were located.
We continue the archeological tour in Valencia by leaving the square. There we find two main streets that were important in the Roman era: the Cardo and the Decumano. Nowadays, these streets are known as Calle Salvador and Calle Caballeros, and they are two of the most well known and busiest main streets in the center of Valencia.
If we walk towards the end of these streets, to the point where you come across Plaza de Almoina, an essential stop has to be made there in our archeological tour.
On the square, you can find the Almoina Archeological Center, which is again, another essential stop in our archeological tour in Valencia. The museum is considered one of the best archeological centers in Europe. You can find the remains of the excavated site and you can look at buildings which laid the foundations of the city.
During the excavation, they have discovered traces of soldiers’ bodies as well as their equipment, with obvious signs of aggression during the attacks. The museum also display remains of the Islamic era and the Christian era.
It is incredible what the excavations have brought to light, as there are remains of all the historical stages in Valencia: the burial of bishop Valentino, the Islamic palace bathrooms and a chapel built in gothic style that is known as the prison of San Vicente
We continue our archeological tour in Valencia by looking back on something historical: In the year 75 AC, the city of Valencia was partially destroyed during the war between Pompeyo and Sertorio. Various texts have been found, which say that large Roman walls were built as a defense of the city. However, no remains have been found.
If you want to take a look at the remains of this era, then you should definitely visit the neighborhood del Carmen, as there are various must-visits there. Here are some streets you should visit:
The conquest of Valencia during the reign of Jaime I in 1238, was the end of 5 Islamic centuries. The Christians became the next inhabitants of Valencia and they ‘closed’ the city by building a big wall, which Pedro IV of Aragon (called: Pedro el Ceremonioso which is Spanish for the ceremonious) commanded them to do. They didn’t destroy the Arabic wall, because it was used as a defense.
The Christian wall consisted out of 12 doors. Two of them still exist and you can visit those during our archeological tour in Valencia. They are known as the Quart Towers and the Serranos Towers. In this last stop of the tour, you can see the impacts of the French artillery that were made during the War of Independence. There were a total of 132 cannon brands located.
Challenge your mind with escape games using logic, creativity and teamwork. A leisure plan in Valencia that you cannot miss!
A little-known secret: Valencia has incredible caves that are magical, beautiful, and accessible!
Valencia has activities and free plans that kids will love and parents will be happy with
Buy in bulk- it's sustainable, organic, without added waste, and helps Valencia to be more clean and a greener city…
What is Realfooding? Discover what it consists of and how to join this lifestyle in Valencia
Live the ultimate culinary experience in Castellon with these Michelin Star Restaurants