The discovery of the phoenician settlement at Ayamonte (Huelva)

In this paper, we present the findings from the surveys and the excavations carried out at Mesa del Tejar and the Barrio de la Villa in the town of Ayamonte (Huelva). These archaeological interventions allow us to determine the extent of the Phoenician settlement related to the necropolis of the Hoya de los Rastros. The archaeological findings help us to define their chronological development. The Phoenician settlement of Ayamonte, dated in the second half of the 8th century BC, stood in front of an indigenous settlement located in Castro Marim (Portugal). This strategic position played an important role in the Phoenician Atlantic routes and trades with the hinterland along and across the Guadiana, but was finally deserted at the beginning of the second half of the 7th century BC, probably due to the concentration of the population in Castro Marim.

Cabaco, B., Pérez, A., The discovery of the phoenician settlement at Ayamonte (Huelva), Collezione di Studi Fenici, 48. De Huelva a Malaka: Los Fenicios en Andalucía a la luz de los descrubrimientos más recientes, editor científico Massimo Botto, CNR – Istituto di Studi Sul Mediterraneo Antico, CNR edizioni, Roma 2018