AMPURIES: GREEK AND ROMAN COLONY

Ampuries ruins are a very ancient settlement by the Mediterranean, in the Costa Brava, next to l'Escala a lovely fisherman village  and very near of the Pyrenees, the Catalan natural border with France.

During the VI century B.C.  greek people arrived to Ampuries and founded a colony, Emporion. During the second Punic War, at the beginning of the III century B.C., the roman militars came into Spain by Emporio, and  and they started the romanization of the Iberian Peninsula. In the II century B.C. they founded Emporiae at the north side of the greek colony.

In 1908 the archaeological reseach was started until today, there are still 75% of the settlement pending of excavation, and Ampuries is part of the Archaelogical Museum of Catalonia.

View of the ruins of the greek colony by the mediterranean

The original Asclepius statue found in 1908

Impluviun of a roman house

Roman wall and gate

 

A phallus by the gate, symbol of prosperity and luck

ANTONI TAPIES HAS PASSED AWAY

The great painter Antoni Tàpies died yesterday in Barcelona, he was one of my favourite artist, I dedicated two of my post in this blog to him and his Foundation, here you have the links:
Antoni Tàpies Foundation
The Montane Simo Publish House

Also a little of his genius:

 Inside Tàpies Foundation

Chair and Cloud on the top of the Montané Simó Publish House

The controversial sculpture of  a sock