Pollentia Roman City

By Olaf Tausch (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons

By Olaf Tausch (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)], via Wikimedia Commons

Pollentia means “power”, it is a republican establishment typical name and it is already mentioned in classical sources. It is the only Roman city that can be visited in Mallorca, in the outskirts of Alcudia. About 70-80 BC, the establishment was only a small foundation. At August age, a strong urban plannig impulse was given and the city surpassed 12 hectares. Pol·lèntia is the provincial Roman city standard: reticulate design, a central forum, a residential area, a theatre at the outskirts and several necropolis around. Accurate excavations were carried out during the 50´s, thanks to William Bryant´s Hispanoamerican Foundation sponsorship. Now the Roman theatre and Sa Portella residential area can be visited. In Sa portella there is a III century wall and a group of I century houses. One of them, of 450 square metres, can be fully seen. It is a standard of the Roman domus, built according to the typical Italican home.

The Roman theatre was built by the end of the I century, at the outskirts of the Roman city. It was a semicircular construction for drama and musical performances. It is estimated that it could held 2000 people. Following the Greek tradition, it was built profiting a slope.

Pollentia´s Monograph Museum is housed in old Sant Jaume´s Hospital, built in the XIV century. It contains household pottery pieces, glass objects, jewelry, farming tools, surgical instruments, loom pieces, games, bronze and bone decoration and household objects.There are also several sculptures, theatre masks and domestic worship objects to protect the family.

Carrer de Sant Jaume, 30. Telephone: +34 971547004
Visit time table of the museum ant the Portella roman houses:
From October until March: from Tuesday until Friday 10 am – 1 pm and i 3´30 pm – 5´30 pm, Saturdays and Sundays 10´30 am – 1 pm , on Monday closed.
From April until September: from Tuesday until Friday 10 am – 1´30 pm and i 5 pm -7´30 pm, Saturdays and Sundays 10´30 am – 1 pm , on Monday closed

Roman domination of Mallorca