What is a Mansio?

MANSIO – THE REST STATION

The term mansio means a rest station but is also an umbrella term for an entire road station.

Such stations made it possible for the Roman Empire to colonise the provinces and thus expand their power. As road-building artists, not only did the Romans construct a wide-ranging road network, but also traffic hubs, public facilities for travellers such as baths, rest stations and staging posts, post quarters and residential settlements for the locals, who predominantly lived from agriculture.
Larger road stations with service facilities were built at intervals of, on average, 40 km. In between there were smaller staging posts with simple accommodation every 17 km. The names mansio for rest station and mutatio for (horse) changing station (staging post) first come into common use in the 4th century CE.

Sebatum is named in the Itinerarium Antonini as a road station along the Aquileia-Veldidena route.

The Roman road directory was written down at the end of the 3rd century CE. A total distance is always indicated for the onshore routes. The places along the route and the distances between them are listed.