Timeline

Heritage classified

Origin and history

The starting dock of the Roman port of Sainte-Colombe is a listed historical monument located in the commune of Sainte-Colombe, in the Rhône department. This site, dated from antiquity, illustrates the importance of Roman port infrastructure in the region, then crossed by river trade routes. The preserved, though partial, ruins offer an overview of the construction techniques and logistics organization of the time.

Ranked Historic Monument by decree of 13 September 1920, this wharf is one of the few material remains attesting to the Roman presence in the Rhône valley. Its present state and its approximate location (59 Quai d'Herbouville) highlight the challenges of preserving ancient sites in urban areas. The accuracy of its location is assessed as poor (note 5/10), reflecting the limitations of the available data.

In Roman times, river ports such as that of Sainte-Colombe played a key role in the transport of goods, linking the conquered territories with the main commercial routes. These infrastructures facilitated exchanges between Gallic Romanized cities and major urban centres, such as Lugdunum (Lyon), capital of the Three Gauls. Their decline often coincides with the political and economic upheavals of the third and fourth centuries.

Today, the ruins of the wharf are protected, but their accessibility and tourist exploitation remain limited. Available sources, such as the Merimée or Monumentum database, provide administrative and historical information, but little detail on possible archaeological excavations. The Creative Commons license associated with certain photographs of the site allows a shared distribution of its image.

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