Today, Spain is famous for its beaches, castles and cathedrals. But before all that came along, Spain was an important Greek and Roman outpost.
Of special importance in Greco-roman trade were the ports along the Mediterranean.
The town of Empuries has been extremely well preserved and, if you are in the area of Costa Brava, enjoying the area beaches, or just taking a short day-trip from Barcelona, this location is certainly worth the detour.
First founded by the Greek in 575BC the town was later taken over by the Romans. The site started to be recovered archeologically in the 20th century. Not all has been excavated yet, and new discoveries continue to be made.
Two distinct areas of the site have been excavated.
One belonging to the original Greek settlement boasting various temples, such as a temple to Asclepius, of whom a marble statue was found. In the south-east part was a temple to Zeus-Serapis.
Of the Roman city only some 20% has been excavated thus far. The Roman city is considerably larger than the Greek one with temple dedicated to the Capitoline Triad: Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. In the eastern part of the town a number of large houses have been excavated, with an inner courtyard, numerous annexes, floor mosaics, and paintings. An amphitheatre and palaestra were built outside the wall.
