OLD PORT
The harbor of Ancona has been inhabited for millennia. The first people that built a port where the Picentes, who traded with the Greeks in the 3rd century BC. The city itself of Ancona was founded by Greek colonizers, Dorians from Syracuse, in 387 BC, who gave it its present name: in fact, “ankon” in ancient Greek means “elbow”, and such is the shape of the coastline, ideal for a port.
The Porto Antico (Old Port) was brought back to light in excavations carried out between 1998 and 2001. This old Roman port had been in used for centuries, since the Late Republic until the 5th century.
At the entrance to the walkway, on the side facing towards the city, a section of the ancient city walls is visible. These were built in the 2nd century BC, during the Illyrian Wars, when Ancona became the base of the Roman fleet patrolling the Adriatic Sea. Made with sandstone blocks, other sections have been unearthed near the Vanvitelli Promenade.
The so-called Captain’s House, built in the 13th century, which has miraculously survived bombings in 1943, is the only Medieval building in the port. The facade facing towards the sea consists of two large ogival arches and a marvelous Romanesque floral frieze, that appears out of the mouth of a beast.
Reasons to visit:
- One of the must-see landmarks in the city
- Marvelous sunsets
- Bustling part of town
DISCOVER ALL THE SOULS OF ANCONA
EAT AND DRINK LIKE A LOCAL
The flavors, traditions and trends between food and wine that tell the culinary soul of Ancona.
ANCONA IN ONE DAY ON FOOT OR BY BIKE
The historic center of Ancona, the history and the views that will make you fall in love.
PANORAMIC ANCONA
The city that surprises you with its views, its panoramas, a city that lets itself be photographed… always!
