Akko romana

The research on Saint Andrew of Akko, that started in 2016, has its fundamental starting point in wanting to follow the maritime republic of Pisa, in the near East during the medieval period. For this reason, consulting the text of the portolano pisano Lo Compasso da Navegare was necessary to localize in the current urban configuration all the elements facing the sea, that guided the approach of the ships to the port. One of the monitoring terms of approaches is the church of Saint Andrew (Fadda, 1999). Studies, already published, identify the structure of the current church of Saint Andrew as not coinciding with the historical one, but placed in the position where the historical maps indicate the Tower of the Palace of the Constable. The studies and architectural survey have brought to light a series of structural inconsistencies of the basement part of the old structure, to the point that the system can be attributed, from the areas dedicated to the tanks to the area that develops above their level, as a Roman edification. This latest news helps to reconfigure the ancient port structure if placed in direct relation with the site of the lighthouse. It was found in the medieval period, in the area of the so-called tower of Flies, but that formerly was a tower of chief dock. A sea front therefore planned in Roman period, which in its consistency and particular alignments has provided the matrix for the medieval structure, which rests directly on it and does not even alter the mode of access to the port.