Cosa

Cosa is an ancient Roman colonial town occupying a coastal promontory in southern Tuscany, established in the Roman Republican period (third century BC). The site is notable for its well-preserved Republican-era city plan and substantial surviving stone work.

Ruins on site include a raised forum area with temple foundations, domestic structures, shops and civic masonry that illustrate Roman urban design. The polygonal city walls, surviving towers and gateways remain prominent and are a primary focus for visitors interested in Roman architecture.

Founded as a Roman colony in the third century BC, Cosa developed as a coastal town with civic and commercial functions. Over the centuries the settlement was abandoned and later investigated by archaeologists, with systematic excavations taking place during the 20th century and continuing with intermittent fieldwork.

The site sits on a Tuscan coastal headland near the modern village of Ansedonia and the Orbetello lagoon system, overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea. Access is by local roads from nearby towns in the Maremma region.

• Excavations: Archaeological work has been carried out since the 20th century, and the site is visited mainly for its visible Roman urban layout and standing masonry.
• Viewing point: The headland position gives clear views across the surrounding coastal wetlands and the Tyrrhenian Sea from the surviving ramparts.

What to See #

• Forum and Capitolium: Located on a rocky promontory with extensive excavated remains including a forum, temples and domestic buildings dated to the Roman Republic and early Empire.
• City walls: A near-complete circuit of Republican-era polygonal stone city walls with surviving towers and gates visible on the headland.
• Harbour area: Traces of an ancient harbour and quay installations on the seaward side of the site, with associated shoreline archaeology.
• Necropolis: Burial grounds and isolated tombs located outside the ancient city limits, excavated in trenches and test pits.