The emperor's idea was to facilitate the food plan for Rome with another safe landing place and the works were designed by the architect Apollodorus of Damascus.

The entire structure was surmounted by two opposing towers, later called the Bicchiere and the Lazzaretto (still visible, and rebuilt by Giuliano da Sangallo).

[9] After the fall of the Roman Empire, the port of Civitavecchia and the urban settlement of Centumcellae witnessed a succession of dominations and changes of hands, disputed between the papacy, various municipal powers and frequent Saracen incursions.

On November 26, 1659, the first stone of the arsenal designed by Gian Lorenzo Bernini was laid, which for a long time would form a large part of the city's economy.

[9] It is a multifunctional port, divided into two macro areas with different market dynamics: to the south, the one dedicated to tourism, yachting and cruises; to the north the area for commercial traffic, fishing and cabotage; today it can count on approximately 1,900,000 m² of docks, 25 operational berths from 100 to 400 m in length, for approximately 13 km of berths;[10] approximately 11 million tonnes of bulk goods are moved every year; in recent years, coaster services (Motorways of the Sea) have grown, i.e. scheduled services dedicated to the transport of passengers and goods on Mediterranean routes.