elements of demographic, socio-cultural and historical evolution of human settlements
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able to function appropriately, it should have a maximum population of approximately 10 000 inhabitants. The dream of a God King: Alexandria The city of Alexandria was also designed according to the orthogonal model. It was founded on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt in 331 B.C. between the Mareotide marsh (Μαρεῶτις) and the sea, in front of the small island of Pharos (Φάρος) on which the famous lighthouse was built49. This island was connected by the Heptastadion (Επτασταδιοn, meaning seven stadiums long) 50, a breakwater protecting the port. The road infrastructure consisted of secondary roads parallel to the two main roads, one running north to south and one running east to west, intersecting more or less in the centre, but slightly more to the north, to form a wide square. Along the two main streets, which were about thirty metres wide, there were large columned porticoes (Fig. 11). The dam, about 1 200 m long, allowed the creation of two distinct ports, one eastern (Portus Magnus) and one western (Portus Eunusti)51. The first port was in turn divided into two parts: an eastern one overlooking the royal palaces for the exclusive use of the monarchs and a 49 Lighthouse, from the Greek Φάρος, the name of the islet of Faro on the Egyptian coast, on which in the 3rd century B.C. the lighthouse of Alexandria was built. (AA.VV. Vocabolario Treccani 2019). 50 Stadium, from the Greek Στάδιον. Unit of measurement of length in use by the ancient Greeks, equal to 600 feet; in the Attic system it was equal to about 177.60 m, and in the Alexandrian system to about 184.85 metres. The Stadium Race was the oldest foot race in the Panhellenic agonies (Olympic, Pythian, Isthmian, Nemean festivals), so called because it took place over the length of a stadium. (Treccani 2019). 51 Port of good return.
