Italica (Spanish: Itálica) was an ancient Roman city in Hispania; its site is close to the town of Santiponce in the province of Seville, Spain. It was founded in 206 BC by Roman general Scipio as a colonia for his Italic veterans and named after them. Italica later grew attracting new migrants from the Italian peninsula and also with the children of Roman soldiers and native women.
Italica was the first Roman settlement in Spain. It was founded in 206 BC by Publius Cornelius Scipio during the Second Punic War close to a native Iberian town of the Turdetani (dating back at least to the 4th c. BC) as a settlement for his Italic veterans, a mixture of socii and Roman citizens, and therefore named Italica after its inhabitants.
As no modern city covered many of Italica's buildings of the nova urbs, the result is an unusually well-preserved Roman city with cobbled Roman streets and mosaic floors still in situ. Many rich finds can also be seen in the Seville Archaeological Museum, with its ...
Prasat Yai Ngao, also known as Yai Ngao Castle or Lonely Grandma’s Castle, is a small but captivating ancient Khmer sanctuary located in Ban Phon Chai, Ban Chop Subdistrict, Sangkha District of Surin Province in northeastern Thailand.
Situated about four kilometers from the Sangkha district office along Highway 24, with a short dirt track leading to the site, it stands as a testament to the far-reaching influence of the Khmer Empire in the region. The temple was constructed in the first half of the 12th century during the reign of King Suryavarman II, the same monarch responsible for the grand Angkor Wat in Cambodia. It exemplifies the classic Angkor Wat architectural style, characterized by its elegant prang towers and intricate detailing.
The complex consists of two main square brick towers with recessed corners, each measuring about five meters on each side. Evidence suggests a third tower was originally planned but never completed, giving the site its intimate scale compared to larger Khmer ...
Prasat Sikhoraphum is a well-preserved Khmer temple complex located in the district of the same name in Surin Province, northeastern Thailand, approximately 30 to 35 kilometers east of Surin town. Built primarily during the 11th or 12th century as a Hindu sanctuary, it reflects the architectural and religious influence of the Khmer Empire that once extended into this region.
Historians often associate its construction with the reign of a Khmer king such as Suryavarman I, Udayadityavarman II, or Suryavarman II, though the precise ruler remains uncertain, with stylistic evidence pointing toward an earlier period in some analyses.
The temple was originally dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, evident in its carvings and overall design. It features a distinctive quincunx layout of five brick prangs, or towers, arranged on a single square laterite platform, with the central prang rising about 32 meters high and the four smaller ones surrounding it. This arrangement is relatively uncommon in Thailand but ...
Prang Phon Songkhram is a Khmer ruin located in Ban Phon Songkhram, Tambon Phon Songkhram, Amphoe Non Sung, Nakhon Ratchasima Province in northeastern Thailand. It stands as one of the 102 arogayasala, or hospital temples, constructed during the reign of King Jayavarman VII of the Khmer Empire, who ruled approximately from 1181 to 1218.
These structures formed part of an ambitious public welfare initiative that combined medical care with Buddhist spiritual practices, reflecting the king’s deep commitment to alleviating suffering among his subjects as inspired by Mahayana Buddhist ideals.
Jayavarman VII, who shifted the empire’s religious emphasis toward Buddhism after periods of Hindu dominance, ordered the building of these standardized facilities across his vast territory, which included parts of modern-day Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos.
An important inscription at Ta Prohm temple in Angkor, dated to 1186, records the establishment of these 102 hospitals, each equipped to provide free healthcare ...
