During the works for the construction of the golf course of the Costa Navarino hotel unit in the northwest of the village of Romanos, antiquities were discovered that testify to the long-lasting habitation in the area from prehistoric to historical times. Notably, the remains of an extensive Early Helladic settlement (c. 2750-2250 BC) were uncovered, as well as an early Mycenaean tholos tomb and traces of habitation of the Protogeometric and Geometric periods (10th-8th century BC). In the same area and near the river Sela, an early Archaic sanctuary (7th century BC) was discovered.

The sanctuary contained numerous offerings for the worship of a female deity, possibly ‘Potnia Theron’, the patroness of nature and wild animals. It included an elongated temple with stone foundations, mud-brick walls, and a wooden roof, covered with Laconian-type tiles. The temple may have been dedicated to Demeter or Artemis and was likely constructed on a pre-existing sacred site of worship dating back to the Early Helladic period. The sanctuary of Romanos is thought to be linked to Spartan rule in Messenia and remained in use until the Hellenistic era (3rd-2nd century BC), when it may have been renovated to serve the religious requirements of the newly liberated Messenians.