Historical Sites Map: Help & Filters

This page explains how the maps works, how popularity is calculated, and which filters you can use to explore the data.

This logic applies across the all maps on the site on the site that share the same filtering system, with only the available site types and civilizations changing depending on the dataset.

On this page19 sections

Filters available on the map

The map lets you combine several filters at once. Within a single filter you can select multiple options, and the map will only show sites that match all active filters together.

1. Search (text search)

• Free-text search field at the top of the map.
• Looks at the site’s name (and other basic text fields).
• Useful for quickly jumping to a specific site or matching part of a name.

2. Primary site type

• Filters by the main category of the site, for example: city, military, entertainment, religious and so on.
• Helps you focus on a particular kind of place (e.g. only urban centres, only military sites, only entertainment buildings).

3. Sub‑type

• A more detailed classification that refines the main site type, such as temple, amphitheatre, palace, castle
• Only shown when available for the current dataset.
• Use this when you want to narrow down within a broader category.

4. Civilization / cultural phase

• Filters by one or more civilizations or cultural phases associated with the site.
• A site can belong to multiple civilizations when different cultures developed, maintained, expanded, or contributed to it at different times.
• Civilizations are not assigned based on conquest, destruction, or brief military occupation: Only when they played an active role in shaping the site.
• If you open the map from a civilization‑specific page, that civilization will be pre‑selected by default.

5. Country

• Filters sites by modern country.
• You can select one or multiple countries at the same time.
• If you open the map from a country‑specific page, that country will be pre‑selected by default.

6. Popularity

• Uses the popularity buckets described below (Very High, High, Medium, Low, Very Low).
• Helpful for:
  • Finding major, frequently visited sites (Very High / High).
  • Finding quiet or lesser‑known places (Low / Very Low), especially when combined with a minimum rating.

7. Rating

• Filters by the site’s average user rating (star rating) from external platforms.
• The options are grouped into rating bands, for example:
  • 4.5 ★ and up
  • 4.0 – 4.4 ★
  • 3.0 – 3.9 ★
  • Below 3.0 ★
• This lets you, for example, show only highly rated sites (4.0+), or deliberately include everything down to much lower ratings if you want a complete view.

Combining filters

All filters can be used together. A typical use case might be:

Example: Show Roman sites in Italy that are amphitheatres, with a rating of at least 4.0★, but Low or Very Low popularity.

This combination will highlight well‑reviewed but relatively less visited amphitheatres in Italy: Places that are often rewarding if you want fewer crowds.

You can always reset or change your selections directly in the dropdowns or clear the search box to broaden the results again.

How we determine popularity & rating

Each site on the map has a popularity level based on the weighted average total number of user ratings and associated rating it has received on several external platforms. The idea is simple: the more people have rated a place, the more frequently it is visited.

We convert the raw rating count into five popularity buckets:

• Very High – more than 20,000 user ratings
• High – more than 10,000 user ratings
• Medium – more than 1,000 user ratings
• Low – more than 100 user ratings
• Very Low – 100 or fewer user ratings

This means that:

• A site with thousands of reviews is treated as a major, frequently visited destination.
• A site with only a handful of reviews is likely more off the beaten track, even if the quality of the remains is high.

These popularity levels are stored as a field on each site and used by the map’s Popularity filter.

How Sites Are Included and Classified

As a rule of thumb, only meaningful ruins or remains that a historically interested friend would genuinely want to visit were included. As a result, not every minor, poorly preserved, or unmarked location is listed.

In practice, this generally means that sites with no public recognition, very low visitor interest, or consistently poor ratings have been excluded, while well-documented and visitable remains are prioritized.

Civilization labels are assigned based on verifiable archaeological and historical evidence.

What is Included

Many ancient sites were occupied across multiple periods. When a site has securely attested phases under different civilizations, it may be assigned more than one civilization label. Each label must be independently supported by evidence and reflects a documented phase that is still visible at the site.

A civilization is included when:

• It actively contributed to the development of the site, and remains from that period are still visitable

• Or the site was founded by that civilization, based on established archaeological and historical sources

For clarity and consistency:

• Phoenician and Punic sites are grouped under a single tag

• Greek city-states and Hellenistic kingdoms are grouped under the “Greek” tag

What Is Excluded

Civilization labels are deliberately not assigned when:

• Evidence is uncertain, debated, or purely speculative

• A civilization merely conquered, besieged or destroyed a site

How We Determine Site Type and Sub-Type

Each site on the map is classified using a two-level system: a primary site type and, where appropriate, a more specific sub-type. This classification is based strictly on historical and archaeological evidence described in the site’s article.

The goal is to reflect what the site was originally built for and what kind of structure predominantly survives today, rather than how it is used or presented to visitors now.

Primary Site Type

The primary site type represents the site’s main historical function and dominant built form. Every site has a primary type, such as:

• City

• Military

• Religious

• Civic

• Domestic

• Entertainment

• Infrastructure

• Economic

• Burial

• Sanitation

This choice is made by evaluating the site as a whole, not by individual features. For example:

• A large urban centre with streets, public buildings, and long-term civic life is classified as a City, even if it had walls or fortifications.

• A settlement organised mainly around defence, with enclosing walls, gates, and a compact layout, may be classified as Military, specifically as a fortified town.

Sub-Type (when applicable)

The sub-type adds detail within the primary category and is only assigned when there is clear evidence. Examples include:

• Amphitheatre, theatre, circus (Entertainment)

• Castle, fort, tower, citadel (Military)

• Temple, sanctuary, church (Religious)

• Villa, elite residence, palace (Domestic)

Not every site has a sub-type. If the surviving remains do not clearly support a more specific classification, the sub-type is left empty.

What Evidence Is Used

Classification is based only on the evidence described in the site article, including:

• The original function of the structure

• The dominant surviving or standing remains

• Archaeologically documented building phases

Later reuse (for example, a Roman fort converted into a medieval residence) is taken into account only if the later structure forms the main visible remains today. In such cases, the classification reflects the later dominant structure rather than an earlier phase that no longer survives.

Visitor features such as museums, walking paths, interpretation panels, or modern park layouts do not influence classification.

Cities vs Fortified Towns

A clear distinction is made between urban centres and military settlements:

• City is used for large settlements with sustained civic, administrative, and economic life, even if they had defensive walls.

• Fortified Town (a military sub-type) is used only when a small or compact settlement is clearly organised around defence, with walls, gates, and a defensive layout forming its defining character.

City walls alone do not make a site a fortified town.

What Is Not Assigned

A type or sub-type is not assigned when:

• The evidence is uncertain, speculative, or debated

• A structure no longer survives in a meaningful or identifiable way

• Religious buildings that form part of a larger complex (such as a chapel within a castle or palace) do not override the classification of the site as a whole.