Sant Martí d'Empúries, Medieval settlement in L'Escala, Spain
Sant Martí d'Empúries is a medieval settlement on a small peninsula on the Costa Brava, featuring narrow stone streets and a church building with Gothic and Romanesque elements. The village spreads across a hilltop with views toward the Mediterranean and displays the typical layout of a fortified medieval community.
Colonists from Massalia originally established a Greek settlement called Kypsela here in the 6th century BC. The site later saw occupation under Goths and Moors before Catalan settlers built a new community directly above the ancient Greek ruins.
The Church of Sant Martí anchors the settlement and displays architectural layers from different periods visible in its walls and structures. Visitors can observe how these building styles sit on top of one another, telling the story of successive occupations through their physical forms.
The settlement is reachable by car via a coastal road or on foot through a walking path that connects to the nearby archaeological park and crosses uneven terrain. Visitors should wear comfortable shoes and allow time to navigate the narrow alleyways at a slow pace.
The village sits directly atop the foundations of an ancient Greek city and archaeologists view it as a living layer museum. Those who look closely can spot the boundaries between time periods in the walls themselves, where old stones were reused in later structures.
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