History of Savudrija
In past centuries the place was also known by the names of Siluo, Silbio, Silbonis, and Silvium. The oldest traces of human presence in the area have been found near the lighthouse. Subjected to radiocarbon dating, known also as carbon-14 dating, these stone artifacts were found to be 11,170 years old, ± 209 years. This may have been an open-air settlement.
In later times we come across citadels, like Sveti Petar near Crveni Vrh, and Romanija. As for the ancient period, there are plentiful remains testifying to the Roman presence. By then this territory must have become densely populated and important.
Bearing witness to the rich historical stratification of the area is also an inscription found at Frančeskija. This stone was originally part of a sepulchral monument and it has been dated to the late lst or early 2nd century. Today it can be seen in the Umag collection of stone monuments. It owes its peculiarity to the fact that in Venetian times it had the Pasqualigos' coat of arms engraved on its back. Over years many Roman findings have been unearthed, particularly near the harbour of Savudrija. The great importance of the harbour is explained by the very long continuity of life in these parts. However, there is one further reason: due to its proximity to Aquileia, it was an important seaborne trade link.
The ancient remains were first described very early. in 1540, by Pietro Coppo. a geographer born in Venice. but who spent his life in Piran. Indeed, he indicates that one can see the remains of various buildings and that low ebb brings to light the ruins of the older harbour. The subject has been treated by many other scholars, but the most detailed survey was published by Professor Attilio Degrassi in 1957. The natural inlet was enclosed by two jetties. The southern was some 110 metres long, while the length of the northern one amounted probably to 50 odd metres. The northern jetty was rebuilt in 1996, with a lighthouse on its tip. Within the project, stone blocks belonging to the original structures were built into the new harbour constructions.
The road leaving the houses of Savudrija for the jetty was made in 1929, which occasioned casual discoveries of a massive wall, canal, and plentiful artifacts. The most conspicuous of the latter is a little bronze statue of the goddess Isis Fortuna, dated to the 2nd century A.D. The image testifies to the phenomenon of syncretism between the Oriental fertility goddess Isis and the Roman goddess of fortune - Fortuna, as a matter of fact. It has been exhibited in the Archaeological Museum of Istria in Pula.Significant remains are still visible, especially to the south of the bay, where the ruins include a tank. The subsequent development of the area is scarsely documented. We do learn, however, that in 1463 various families came from Dalmatia and were given land in the region of Savudrija.
Until the middle of the 20th century this was a territory where several private landowners had their vast estates, exemplified by Crveni Vrh, today a famous tourist resort, once a manor covering an area of 1600 acres, 1000 of which was cultivated land. Of the twenty-eight estates situated in north-western Istria, all of them with a surface exceeding 75 acres, six were within the zone of Savudrija, with a total of 2400 acres. The manor of Crveni Vrh was the second most important, coming after the Benedictine possession of Dajla.
The landscape here is still specific for its numerous ranches, called štancija -small settlements with capacious stables and other accompanying facilities. In wintertime they frequently offered shelter to shepherds from the mountains of Ćićarija. In the precincts of these štancijas there are many buildings which preserve architectural qualities of past times, recording lifestyles that are becoming ever more remote.
In the štancija of Frančeskija, that belonged to counts Toppo, temporarily active was even a small cork-works! A final curiosity. In 1911 a steamship was built and named Lampo (Lightning), later Salvore (Italian for Savudrija). After long years of arduous service, which on several occasions brought her to the harbour of Savudrija, in 1944 she was sunk in Rijeka harbour.
