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Rich history of the Solin Port

Published on 04/02/2021 (last modified 12/04/2022)

Visit the MyPortHeritage virtual exhibition and learn all about the history of the forgotten Salona Port

We know very little about the Salona Port as no proper archaeological research has been carried out since the area of the former port is now overrun by a highway, railway, oil reservoirs and other industrial buildings.


The port stretched for some 1.5 kilometres, between the Gospin Otok island and the amphitheatre, including the southern side of the bay in the direction of Vranjic. 


The coexistence between the ancient inhabitants of Salona (today’s Solin) and the sea has been recorded since the 2nd century BCE. In its beginnings, the Salona Port was just an emporium, but the sea opened the door of the Solin basin to the world of the Mediterranean economy.  Roman merchants, as new intermediaries, built links between the Salona and the workshop market of the Italian Peninsula. The movement of goods was greatly facilitated by the construction of a port complex with numerous docks and a warehouse. The development of trading links with other cities in the Mediterranean and the distribution of goods along local routes in the hinterland stimulated the founding of local workshops and brought work to the local populace. These factors turned Salona into an import/export magnet that redirected and processed a variety of goods from all parts of the Mediterranean. Ships arrived in the port from two directions. The first, western route ran between Čiovo and Trogir, and the second, southern route was between Cape Marjan and the eastern Cape Čiovo.

 

 

The sea held undisputed importance for the people of Solin throughout history, but the collapse of Salona and the pressure from Split advanced the decline of the Solin Port, which was clogged with incessant mud deposits from the Jadro River. At the break of the 20th century, cement factories sprung up in the Solin area and the sudden industrialization of the area created countless new jobs that were readily welcomed by the workers of Solin.
For more information on the history of the city and port of Ravenna, click http://myportheritage.eu/city/solin/.