Ruins of Empúries

The Phoenicians were the first to settle here on an island on the south side of the Gulf of Roses. Meanwhile, this island has become a hill on the mainland. Around 600 BC the Greeks came to settle there. In the 5th century BC, the city grew rapidly, perhaps due to the lucrative grain trade. Over time, it became a true Greek city-state, called Emporion (μπριον). Empúries is now a group of ruins close to l'Escala, located in the Spanish autonomous region of Catalonia. It is the site of the Greek settlement of Empórion, renamed Emporiae by the Romans from where the region was ruled for seven centuries from 600 BC.

Catalunya Tourist Board