Lancia Archaeological Site

The archaeological site of the historical town of Lancia is located on an exceptional place, overlooking the Esla and Porma River Valleys. The Astures (Celtic tribe) settled down here during Bronze Age. It was later conquered by the Romans. There are numerous references to Lancia among Roman historians. According to Cassius Dio, “it was the most important Astur city”. Archaelogical findings evidence this idea, since the city must have been approximately 30 hectares (74 acres) big during the pre-Roman period.

Since the end of the 1st century AD, Lancia was classified as “municipium flavium”. Evidence of this is the type of public buildings, the sewers and the reticular-plan urban layout. Among its constructions, the featured ones are the market and the baths. They both preserve the sewers or drain system, showing its internal water usage.

The baths’ inner distribution is as follows: hallway, rooms, dressing-room, latrines, cold room with a swimming-pool, warm rooms and hot room, made up of an elevated floor through which hot air flows, maintained by a furnace.

The market is a symmetrical building having two large lobbies and an arcaded hallway that led to the six tents.