Secrets of Roman Barcelona
Culture 07/01/2025
Barcelona is a city that breathes history in every corner. When people hear the name of the city, they think of Gaudí, its beaches, its cultural life, but few know that beneath its streets are hidden the vestiges of an ancient Roman city. Join us to discover the secrets of Roman Barcelona, where past and present go hand in hand.
Barcino was a small Roman colony founded by the Emperor Augustus in the 1st century BC and which grew to become an imperial city. One of the most established theories about the origin of the city's Roman name explains that the Iberian settlement that inhabited the city before the arrival of the Romans was called Barkeno (great shipyard) and the Latinization of this name made the city become Barcino . It was established in a perfect enclave with a strategic defensive position between the mountains and with the Mediterranean Sea bathing its coast. In addition, the proximity to other very important Roman cities of the time such as Tarraco, present-day Tarragona, made Barcino a key point for trade.
The walls
Between the 1st and 2nd centuries BC, the city was walled, delimiting a perimeter that would remain in place until the Middle Ages. Barcino was a typically Roman city with its forum in the centre, from which two main streets branched out in the shape of a cross, the cardo and the decumanus, leading to the four access gates in the walls.
In various parts of the Gothic Quarter, some exposed sections can be seen, although the wall currently visible is not the original one from the Roman period, since, between the 3rd and 4th centuries, a double wall of 8 metres was built, but the originally Roman wall is still there too. In the Plaza Nova, to the right of the Cathedral, the Porta Praetoria is preserved, known as the Portal del Bisbe in the Middle Ages, which gave access to the Iulia Augusta Faventia Paterna Barcino colony through the decumanus. Flanking the gate, there are two cylindrical towers original from the Roman wall, although their height was increased in the 12th century.
If you want to explore the lesser-known sections of the Roman wall, we suggest you visit the Historical Archive of the City, located on Calle Santa Llúcia. As you walk through its courtyard, you can see the inner part of the wall. Also, in the courtyard of the Casal de Gent Gran Pati Llimona, at 5 Calle del Correu Vell, you will find an impressive fragment of the wall. Furthermore, when you enter the Sala de las Ruinas of the Termes building, inside the Pati Llimona Civic Centre, you will have the opportunity to admire a 17-metre section of the wall that includes one of the side access doors for pedestrians, known as the Puerta de Regomir.
Barcino wall on current map of Barcelona
The secrets hidden underground
To discover Roman history and everything that lies beneath the city's current streets, the best way is to visit the Museu d'Història de Barcelona (MUHBA), which is accessed from the Monumental Complex of Plaça del Rei and allows you to go down to the basement to walk through the ancient streets of Barcino, explore the shops, workshops, thermal baths and discover what the fascinating daily life of that time was like.
Other Roman remains on the surface
-Columns: At number 10 on Carrer del Paradís, inside the courtyard of a medieval building, you can see the remains of the Temple of Augustus, four columns from the end of the 1st century BC. This temple was located in the central part of the Roman forum, which over the years and centuries was absorbed by different buildings. Three of the columns are preserved from the beginning, the fourth was a reconstruction of archaeological remains that was initially on display in the Plaça del Rei, but in 1956 it was decided to return it to its place.
-Necropolis: In the Plaça Vila in Madrid, you will find the ancient Roman necropolis. This cemetery was used between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD, and is one of the few that are preserved in a modern city. The square offers a free, open-air view of the tombs, perfectly integrated into their surroundings. Walking through the place, you can see more than 70 tombs, some of them with inscriptions that tell stories of the deceased. This space is specifically a sepulchral road, a secondary road that connected Barcino with the current area of Sarrià where the tombs of people from the popular classes were placed on both sides along with various funerary monuments. At that time the necropolis was outside the city walls, since Roman legislation prohibited burying the dead inside the city.
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- Aqueduct: The wells that exploited the groundwater of the walled enclosure of Barcino did not provide enough water and a more abundant supply was sought. The chosen site was in Montcada, from where an aqueduct of more than 11 km carried water to the city. The pipeline was largely underground, with some sections raised on arches. Currently, it is only possible to visit a section of about 20 m with four arches and five pillars incorporated into the wall of a house in the Plaç del Vuit de Març, discovered in 1988. In the Plaç Nova, in the left tower of the north gate of the Roman wall, a pair of arches rebuilt in 1958 remind the visitor of the exact point of entry of the Roman aqueduct into the city.
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Curiosities
- Barcino, small but strategic: With just 10 hectares of land, Barcino was a small city compared to other Roman colonies, but its privileged location made it an important commercial enclave.
- Barcino wine: The Romans of Barcino produced wine which they exported to other parts of the Empire. The amphorae used to transport it were made locally and many have been found in excavations.
- The Montjuïc quarry: Many of the buildings in Barcino, including the walls and the Temple of Augustus, were built with stone extracted from the Montjuïc mountain.
- The sewer network: Barcino had an advanced sewerage system, something uncommon in cities of its size, which demonstrates its strategic importance.
Exploring the secrets of Roman Barcelona is a journey that takes you back to the origins of a city that, despite its evolution over the centuries, lives on in its walls, temples and underground remains, waiting to be discovered by all its visitors.
Don't forget your camera and your curiosity! Barcelona always has a story to tell and this side of the city is one of the most fascinating.
Barcino was a small Roman colony founded by the Emperor Augustus in the 1st century BC and which grew to become an imperial city. One of the most established theories about the origin of the city's Roman name explains that the Iberian settlement that inhabited the city before the arrival of the Romans was called Barkeno (great shipyard) and the Latinization of this name made the city become Barcino . It was established in a perfect enclave with a strategic defensive position between the mountains and with the Mediterranean Sea bathing its coast. In addition, the proximity to other very important Roman cities of the time such as Tarraco, present-day Tarragona, made Barcino a key point for trade.
The walls
Between the 1st and 2nd centuries BC, the city was walled, delimiting a perimeter that would remain in place until the Middle Ages. Barcino was a typically Roman city with its forum in the centre, from which two main streets branched out in the shape of a cross, the cardo and the decumanus, leading to the four access gates in the walls.
In various parts of the Gothic Quarter, some exposed sections can be seen, although the wall currently visible is not the original one from the Roman period, since, between the 3rd and 4th centuries, a double wall of 8 metres was built, but the originally Roman wall is still there too. In the Plaza Nova, to the right of the Cathedral, the Porta Praetoria is preserved, known as the Portal del Bisbe in the Middle Ages, which gave access to the Iulia Augusta Faventia Paterna Barcino colony through the decumanus. Flanking the gate, there are two cylindrical towers original from the Roman wall, although their height was increased in the 12th century.
If you want to explore the lesser-known sections of the Roman wall, we suggest you visit the Historical Archive of the City, located on Calle Santa Llúcia. As you walk through its courtyard, you can see the inner part of the wall. Also, in the courtyard of the Casal de Gent Gran Pati Llimona, at 5 Calle del Correu Vell, you will find an impressive fragment of the wall. Furthermore, when you enter the Sala de las Ruinas of the Termes building, inside the Pati Llimona Civic Centre, you will have the opportunity to admire a 17-metre section of the wall that includes one of the side access doors for pedestrians, known as the Puerta de Regomir.
The secrets hidden underground
To discover Roman history and everything that lies beneath the city's current streets, the best way is to visit the Museu d'Història de Barcelona (MUHBA), which is accessed from the Monumental Complex of Plaça del Rei and allows you to go down to the basement to walk through the ancient streets of Barcino, explore the shops, workshops, thermal baths and discover what the fascinating daily life of that time was like.
Other Roman remains on the surface
-Columns: At number 10 on Carrer del Paradís, inside the courtyard of a medieval building, you can see the remains of the Temple of Augustus, four columns from the end of the 1st century BC. This temple was located in the central part of the Roman forum, which over the years and centuries was absorbed by different buildings. Three of the columns are preserved from the beginning, the fourth was a reconstruction of archaeological remains that was initially on display in the Plaça del Rei, but in 1956 it was decided to return it to its place.
-Necropolis: In the Plaça Vila in Madrid, you will find the ancient Roman necropolis. This cemetery was used between the 1st and 3rd centuries AD, and is one of the few that are preserved in a modern city. The square offers a free, open-air view of the tombs, perfectly integrated into their surroundings. Walking through the place, you can see more than 70 tombs, some of them with inscriptions that tell stories of the deceased. This space is specifically a sepulchral road, a secondary road that connected Barcino with the current area of Sarrià where the tombs of people from the popular classes were placed on both sides along with various funerary monuments. At that time the necropolis was outside the city walls, since Roman legislation prohibited burying the dead inside the city.
- Aqueduct: The wells that exploited the groundwater of the walled enclosure of Barcino did not provide enough water and a more abundant supply was sought. The chosen site was in Montcada, from where an aqueduct of more than 11 km carried water to the city. The pipeline was largely underground, with some sections raised on arches. Currently, it is only possible to visit a section of about 20 m with four arches and five pillars incorporated into the wall of a house in the Plaç del Vuit de Març, discovered in 1988. In the Plaç Nova, in the left tower of the north gate of the Roman wall, a pair of arches rebuilt in 1958 remind the visitor of the exact point of entry of the Roman aqueduct into the city.
Curiosities
- Barcino, small but strategic: With just 10 hectares of land, Barcino was a small city compared to other Roman colonies, but its privileged location made it an important commercial enclave.
- Barcino wine: The Romans of Barcino produced wine which they exported to other parts of the Empire. The amphorae used to transport it were made locally and many have been found in excavations.
- The Montjuïc quarry: Many of the buildings in Barcino, including the walls and the Temple of Augustus, were built with stone extracted from the Montjuïc mountain.
- The sewer network: Barcino had an advanced sewerage system, something uncommon in cities of its size, which demonstrates its strategic importance.
Exploring the secrets of Roman Barcelona is a journey that takes you back to the origins of a city that, despite its evolution over the centuries, lives on in its walls, temples and underground remains, waiting to be discovered by all its visitors.
Don't forget your camera and your curiosity! Barcelona always has a story to tell and this side of the city is one of the most fascinating.
