Category: Archaeology > Archaeological Site
District: Setúbal > Alcácer do Sal > Torrão > Fonte Santa
The Fonte Santa Archaeological Station is located in the urban area that gives it its name, in the locality of Torrão, municipality of Alcácer do Sal. This place of historical interest is situated in an area adjacent to the village school, discreetly integrating into the local landscape and inviting a serene discovery of its ancient remains.
The remains present at Fonte Santa transport us directly to the Roman period, with an occupation that extended approximately between the 1st and 5th centuries AD. It is believed that this site was a thermal complex, that is, Roman baths, associated with a large rural villa. This interpretation is based on the discovered structures and points to the importance of the region in the daily and economic life of the Romans who settled here.
The Roman presence at this point in the Alentejo had already been noted in the 19th century by Leite de Vasconcelos, who identified a small construction, possibly a water tank, made with a Roman construction technique called opus signinum, and surrounded by numerous tile fragments.
More recent archaeological excavations have revealed a set of tanks of various sizes, both rectangular and quadrangular, which would have been an integral part of the thermal complex. Among the most notable finds is a mosaic fragment dated to the 1st century AD, exhibiting an elegant black and white geometric pattern, which once adorned one of the spaces of the structure.
A particularly intriguing aspect is the discovery of graves inside one of the tanks. This practice indicates that, after abandoning their original functions, the structures were reused as burial sites, offering a unique insight into the evolution and readaptation of the space over time.
The artifacts collected on site consist of various objects that give us an idea of the life and habits of the ancient inhabitants. Among them are coins, fragments of terra sigillata, a high-quality Roman table ceramic –, common pottery used for daily life, and also construction elements. These finds allow archaeologists to reconstruct a part of the history of Fonte Santa and the role it played in Roman life in Torrão.
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.pt
Coordinates DD: 38.29138979920788, -8.224465429108346
Coordinates DMS: 38°17'29.0"N 08°13'28.1"W
On-duty Pharmacy Torrão
