Narona
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Narona was the name of the ancient Roman city that was located in the Neretva valley in present day Croatia. The city was located on the alluvial planes, between present day City of Metković and Vid. Narona was the major Roman stronghold which became a colony in 2nd century BC, and settlement was occupied until the start of 7th century and stopped functioning as a settlement soon after the arrival of Croatian tribes in the region.
In 1995 a Roman temple building was discovered, which had been dedicated by the governor Dolabella and contained statues of the emperors Claudius and Vespasian, as well as two of Augustus and his wife Livia. The statues had been vandalized in the 4th century: they were lying on the floor and their heads had been broken off. The heads of Vespasian and one of the Livias had been acquired in the surrounding area, the former by Arthur Evans in 1878: these heads were reunited with their bodies, and the shrine's statues are now touring major European museums.
