EMPÚRIES - ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE AND MUSEUM

Empúries was christened Emporion (market) by the Greeks who settled a counter there. This was the gateway to the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula by the Roman civilization. The ruins, surrounded by pine trees, are located on a very beautiful site on the seafront of the Gulf of Roses. Three centres comprise the site: Paliápolis, the ancient city, Neápolis, the new Greek city, and the Roman city. There is also the Archaeology Museum. It takes a little more than an hour to visit archaeological sites and about minutes for the museum.

Archaeology Museum: It shows the objects discovered on the site and the temples of temples. Among the most interesting pieces, mosaics representing the sacrifice of Iphigénie and Partridge. A well-done audio-visual artist with a duration of 20 minutes presents the history of the site in the auditorium.

:: unlike that of Paliápolis, the archaeological site of Neápolis has been completely searched, despite the overlapping of constructions over more than a thousand years. The city was fortified by a wall (a small part of which was conserved) and towers. Among the few remains still visible: tanks of drinking water, columns and altar of a temple, statues and ruins of a covered market.

Roman city: in front of Neápolis is the Roman town, which has not been fully explored. Its walls have been partly restored. Among the remains still visible: two houses, a forum and an amphitheatre. The 1 house has a-columns atrium decorated with mosaics and murals. The 2 B house has an atrium and an peristyle in columns. It features beautiful mosaic floors. A little lower, the ruins of the forum, the heart of the city, once surrounded by numerous temples and shops. A little further away from the other side of the walls, the remains of the amphitheater can be distinguished.

The remains of the medieval village of Sant Marti d'Empúries are reached by a walk on the seafront of about 1 km.