Enclave Arquelógico Carteia Museum

Address: Enclave Arqueológico Carteia, near Puente Mayorga / San Roque, Cádiz, Andalusia, Spain

The Enclave Arqueológico Carteia is the archaeological site of the ancient town of Carteia on the Bay of Gibraltar in Andalusia, Spain. It is notable for its Roman phase, when it was organized as a colonia under Roman authority.

Excavated remains include urban foundations, street layouts and building platforms that illustrate a small Roman town economy tied to the sea and salt production. Visitors can see domestic and public building footprints and surface finds recovered from the site that reflect occupation in the Republican and Imperial periods.

The site shows earlier Phoenician and Carthaginian presence and was incorporated into the Roman sphere in antiquity. In 171 BC Rome established a colonia there for freedmen, after which the settlement developed an urban layout and maritime trade connections until its decline in Late Antiquity.

The archaeological enclave sits on a low promontory near the mouth of the Guadarranque River in the municipality of San Roque, province of Cádiz, on the Bay of Gibraltar. It lies roughly 10 km northeast of Gibraltar and about 20 km southeast of Algeciras.

• Visitor centre: Houses finds and explanatory exhibits that help interpret the town’s Roman phase without repeating the site’s name.
• Roman colony date: Established by Rome in 171 BC as a colonia for freedmen, which marks the beginning of its documented Roman urban phase.

What to See#

• Roman city remains: Urban foundations, street grid and building remains from the Roman period, with evidence of domestic and public architecture mainly dating from the 1st century BC through the 3rd century AD.
• Necropolis: A nearby burial area containing tomb structures and funerary material attributed to the Roman-era population of the town.
• Interpretation centre: A small on-site interpretation centre that houses pottery, amphora fragments and inscriptions recovered during excavations and provides explanatory panels about the site’s occupation.

Carteia is a short drive from San Roque (about 10-12 minutes from the town centre) and around 15-20 minutes from La Línea de la Concepción. From San Roque take the A-405 toward Puente Mayorga and follow local signage to the archaeological site and the coastline. Limited local buses serve the area; a car or taxi is the most practical option.

• Bring sturdy shoes - the site is uneven and sections are exposed to sun and wind.
• Visit the small interpretive panels and the nearby municipal museum in San Roque for finds that aren't on-site.
• Go at low tide to read the shoreline and imagine the Roman trade that once threaded this estuary.