A promontory on the sea with a nearby source of fresh water: for the Greeks it was the ideal condition for a new settlement. And between Punta Licosa and Capo Palinuro they found Focei settlers, fleeing after the defeat suffered in the naval battle of Alalia by an Etruscan-Carthaginian coalition.
They obtained that site from the Enotri and founded in the 6th century B.C. a city that they initially called Hyele from the name of the nearby spring, then Elea. Thanks to its very favorable position from the commercial point of view, Elea grew quickly and soon became one of the most prosperous cities of Magna Graecia. Which saw its fame grow in the V century, thanks to the Eleatic philosophical school, animated by the great pre-Socratic philosophers Parmenides, Zeno, both of Elea, Melisso of Sarno and Senofane of Colofone. Unlike the nearby Poseidonia, Elea, thanks to its two ports, on the sea and on the Alento river, managed to resist the occupation of the Lucanians, remaining free until the advent of the Romans in 273 B.C. and partly even after. In fact, he had a great understanding with Rome, supporting it with their ships in the Punic wars. And the rich Romans, for their part, began to frequent it for the holidays, like all the most beautiful places on the Campania coast.
In 88 B.C. it became a Roman municipality with the name of Velia, preserving the Greek language and the right to mint coins. The golden period continued until the entire first century AD, then began to decline due to the progressive swamping of its territory and then due to the construction of Via Popilia, which marginalized it as a commercial joint. And with the worsening of the geological phenomenon on the coast, a progressive depopulation began.
The archaeological rediscovery took place in the nineteenth century and it’s still ongoing today. The Elea-Velia Archaeological Park, near Ascea Marina, offers visitors an exciting itinerary among the ruins of the ancient city: the port area, Porta Marina and Porta Rosa, the only example of a VI century Greek arch still standing, from where it’s possible to enter the site, the Hellenistic and Roman baths, the Greek agora then the forum of Velia, the Greek Acropolis on which are the remains of a medieval fortification and the Archaic Quarter.
