, U.S., grew from the original
harbor at the convergence of the
Hudson River and the
East River at the
Upper New York Bay. , Italy Wherever ancient civilisations engaged in maritime trade, they tended to develop sea ports. One of the world's oldest known artificial harbors is at
Wadi al-Jarf on the
Red Sea. Along with the finding of harbor structures, ancient anchors have also been found. Other ancient ports include
Guangzhou during
Qin dynasty China and
Canopus, the principal Egyptian port for Greek trade before the foundation of
Alexandria. In
Ancient Greece, Athens' port of
Piraeus was the base for the Athenian fleet which played a crucial role in the
Battle of Salamis against the Persians in 480 BCE. In ancient India from 3700 BCE,
Lothal was a prominent city of the Indus valley civilisation, located in the
Bhal region of the modern state of
Gujarāt.
Ostia Antica was the port of ancient Rome with
Portus established by
Claudius and enlarged by
Trajan to supplement the nearby port of Ostia. In Japan, during the
Edo period, the island of
Dejima was the only port open for trade with Europe and received only a single Dutch ship per year, whereas
Osaka was the largest domestic port and the main trade hub for rice. , Italy
Ostia Antica () is an
ancient Roman city and the port of
Rome located at the mouth of the
Tiber. It is near modern
Ostia, southwest of
Rome. Due to
silting and the invasion of sand, the site now lies from the sea. The name
Ostia (the plural of
ostium) derives from Latin
os 'mouth'. Ostia is now a large
archaeological site noted for the excellent preservation of its ancient buildings, magnificent
frescoes and impressive
mosaics. The city's decline after antiquity led to harbor deterioration, marshy conditions, and reduced population. Sand dunes covering the site aided its preservation. Its remains provide insights into a city of commercial importance. As in
Pompeii, Ostia's ruins provide details about Roman
urbanism that are not accessible within the city of Rome itself. Post-classical
Swahili kingdoms are known to have had trade port islands and trade routes with the Islamic world and Asia. They were described by Greek historians as "metropolises". Famous African trade ports such as
Mombasa,
Zanzibar,
Mogadishu and
Kilwa were known to Chinese sailors such as
Zheng He and medieval Islamic historians such as the Berber Islamic voyager
Abu Abdullah ibn Battuta. Many of these ancient sites no longer exist or function as modern ports. Even in more recent times, ports sometimes fall out of use.
Rye, East Sussex, was an important English port in the Middle Ages, but the coastline changed and it is now from the sea, while the ports of
Ravenspurn and
Dunwich have been lost to
coastal erosion. of
medieval Italy:
Amalfi,
Genoa,
Pisa, and
Venice,
Noli,
Ancona,
Ragusa,
Gaeta. The
maritime republics (), also called merchant republics (), were Italian
thalassocratic port cities which, starting from the
Middle Ages, enjoyed political autonomy and economic prosperity brought about by their maritime activities. The term, coined during the 19th century, generally refers to four Italian cities, whose coats of arms have been shown since 1947 on the flags of the
Italian Navy and the Italian Merchant Navy:
Amalfi,
Genoa,
Pisa, and
Venice. In addition to the four best known cities,
Ancona,
Gaeta,
Noli, and, in
Dalmatia,
Ragusa, are also considered maritime republics; in certain historical periods, they had no secondary importance compared to some of the better known cities. Uniformly scattered across the Italian peninsula, the maritime republics were important not only for the history of navigation and commerce: in addition to precious goods otherwise unobtainable in Europe, new artistic ideas and news concerning distant countries also spread. From the 10th century, they built fleets of ships both for their own protection and to support extensive trade networks across the Mediterranean, giving them an essential role in reestablishing contacts between
Europe,
Asia, and
Africa, which had been interrupted during the early Middle Ages. They also had an essential role in the
Crusades and produced renowned explorers and navigators such as
Marco Polo and
Christopher Columbus. Over the centuries, the maritime republics — both the best known and the lesser known but not always less important — experienced fluctuating fortunes. In the 9th and 10th centuries, this phenomenon began with Amalfi and Gaeta, which soon reached their heyday. Meanwhile, Venice began its gradual ascent, while the other cities were still experiencing the long gestation that would lead them to their autonomy and to follow up on their seafaring vocation. After the 11th century, Amalfi and Gaeta declined rapidly, while Genoa and Venice became the most powerful republics. Pisa followed and experienced its most flourishing period in the 13th century, and Ancona and Ragusa allied to resist Venetian power. Following the 14th century, while Pisa declined to the point of losing its autonomy, Venice and Genoa continued to dominate navigation, followed by Ragusa and Ancona, which experienced their golden age in the 15th century. In the 16th century, with Ancona's loss of autonomy, only the republics of Venice, Genoa, and Ragusa remained, which still experienced great moments of splendor until the mid-17th century, followed by over a century of slow decline that ended with the
Napoleonic invasion. ==Modern ports==