Smirčić Archaeological Site, Stari Grad

Smirčić is a site in the Stari Grad Plain on the island of Hvar, about a kilometer east of Stari Grad, in Split-Dalmatia County. In the plain, which is cultivated today, the remains of a Roman estate rest underground, discovered almost by chance.

Traces of a villa rustica appeared when foundations were being dug for a transformer station. A different way of building reveals two construction phases: the older, from the early Roman period, with regularly dressed stone and thin joints, and the younger, with coarser walls and greater thickness. To the north of them, farmers plowing came across mosaic tesserae. When a road toward Vrbosca was being cut, wall foundations, pottery shards, parts of ancient columns and stone blocks from Pharos's rampart came to light. Most of the site is damaged, but experts believe that only an archaeological excavation would show how important the complex actually is.

The site is a protected cultural good, entered in the Register of Cultural Goods of the Republic of Croatia under the code Z-5548.

Data: Register of Cultural Goods of the Republic of Croatia (Ministry of Culture and Media), Open Licence; coordinates: DGU (centre of the settlement).