The graceful Templo Romano stands at the very heart of the old city. Dating from the second century AD, it is the best-preserved temple in Portugal, despite its use as an execution-ground during the Inquisition and a slaughterhouse until 1870. The remains consist of a small platform supporting fourteen granite columns with Corinthian capitals and a marble entablature. Its popular attribution to Diana is apparently fanciful; Jupiter is the more likely alternative. The little garden in front of the temple has a kiosk-bar, while from the terrace you can look north across the rooftops – and see just how small contemporary Évora is, with the fields beginning only a few hundred metres away.

The other significant Roman remain was uncovered beneath the nearby town hall, the Câmara Municipal (Mon– Fri 9am–5.30pm), where during office hours you can walk in to view the Termas Romanas (Roman baths), which date from a century earlier than the temple. These include an arched brick doorway, the entrance to an extraordinary room with a circular hot and steam bath that's 9m in diameter.