Roman ruins of Quinta da Abicada Roman ruins of Quinta da Abicada Abicada (Villa Romana de Abicada or Estação romana da Quinta da Abicada) is the name of Roman ruins north of the municipality of Alvor, in Roman times the colony of Ipses, which was authorized to mint currency, and near Mexilhoeira Grande in the district of Portimão, Algarve, Portugal and where Pompeia Exoce looked after the burial of her grandson. Both were in the Roman province of Lusitania. Portimão, known as Portus Magnus, was an important Roman commercial port when the Villa was built. The complex is located on a south-facing promontory spur located between
Lusitania "a country of waters", a root word that formerly meant a prince or sovereign governor of a region. Ancient Romans, such as Pliny the Elder ("Natural History", 3.5) and Varro (116 – 27 BC, cited by Pliny), speculated that the name "Lusitania" had Roman origins, as when Pliny says "lusum enim Liberi Patris aut lyssam cum eo bacchantium nomen dedisse Lusitaniae et Pana praefectum eius universae" [Lusitania takes its name from the "Lusus" associated with Bacchus and the "Lyssa" of his Bacchantes, and Pan is its governor]. "Lusus" is usually translated as "game" or "play", while "lyssa" is a borrowing