Carteia

Carteia was a Phoenician, Carthaginian, and Roman port city at the head of the Bay of Gibraltar near modern San Roque. Phoenicians first settled at nearby Cerro del Prado around the 7th century BC, and the Carthaginians later founded the town proper. In 171 BC, its 4,000 inhabitants of mixed Roman-Hispanic heritage petitioned Rome for recognition, making Carteia the first Roman colony outside Italy. The city flourished for nearly 600 years with a population reaching 25,000. Excavations have revealed Roman baths, a forum, a temple on a podium, a noble house with mosaics, and Visigothic tombs, though only about 7% of the site has been excavated.