The roman colony of Sena Gallica. Urban space and economic activities

Bridgehead of Roman expansionism along the Adriatic coast between the end of 4th and the beginning of 3rd century B.C, the Roman colony of Sena Gallica (290-283 B.C) denotes a commercial vocation since its origins, characterizing itself as an emporium, as inherited from the previous pre-Roman settlement. The arrival of mercatores from Lazio and Campania, perhaps aggregated into a conciliabulum, marks the starting point of a new socio-economic system structuring. By the foundation of the colony, at the beginning of 3rd century B.C., the technological impact of Rome arrival is even clearer under several aspects, beginning from the urban planning of the city, through the creation of urban walls and definition of the road system. The arrival of several specialists with specific technological skills alongside the creation of production facilities, leads to a different lifestyle linked to a new society. Extensive land reclamation among depressed areas, Etruscan-Italic model living customs, local ceramic productions pursuing pure Roman tradition models, specialized crops such as vines and olive trees, are just a few of these aspects. Sena Gallica exploits its coastal location by becoming part of the commercial networks that occur in the Adriatic and the Mediterranean. Similarly, it defines limits of its territory through some strongholds and takes possession of it within the framework of agricultural divisions. Rustic villas and furnaces for brick production gradually become pivotal to a new economy.