The Hellenistic-Roman quarter is located in Contrada San Nicola and occupies an area of circa 15,000 m². The excavation of the area, which took place in the 1950’s, revealed a road system built on an orthogonal axes, according to the so called Hippodamean scheme.  Four streets oriented North-South stenopoi/cardines with the same width (5 m.) and at a constant interval of 35 m. intersect orthogonally with the present National Road, nr. 118, which probably follows the layout of an ancient plateia/decumanus. This plateia was 11 m. large, differing in width from the other, parallel, plateiai which were characterized by a maximum width of 7 m. The main plateia was provided with a pavement as well as with paving in opus spicatum, constituted by small paving tiles, which relate to the later phase (3^rd-4^th c. AD). The orthogonal network of stenopoi generates blocks separated each other by small spaces (ambitus). The original layout seems to date to the 4^th or to the 3^rd c. BC, but it is probable that urban area dates to the end of the 1^st c. BC. The area remained vital until the Late Imperial period, when it was abandoned and partially occupied by a necropolis.

There are several types of houses: Hellenistic houses with wide a peristyle courtyard alternate with Pompeian type houses with compluviate atrium of the Italic type and with houses, with a simple atrium, of a hybrid type someway between urban and rustic dwellings. The building material is the local sandstone and the interior decoration is quite often of a high artistic level: painted plasters with a rich sampling of mosaic floors, from the simplest ones of the republican period to the more elaborated of the Imperial age (until the 3^rd c. AD).