Logbook · 4 places

Iberian Settlement of Molí d'Espígol

Tornabous, Urgell, Lleida

1 Villages · 1 Monuments · 1 Curiosities · 1 Historical milestones

Spain › Catalonia › Lleida › Urgell › Tornabous › Iberian Settlement of Molí d'Espígol

Iberian Settlement of Molí d'Espígol

Curiosity · Tornabous, Urgell, Lleida

The Iberian settlement of Molí d'Espígol, in Tornabous (Urgell), was the largest city of the Ilergete tribe, probably identified with Atanagrum, its capital. It covered about 16 hectares and came to have around 6,000 inhabitants and close to 500 houses. It was founded at the end of the 8th century BC, reached its greatest splendour between the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, and was destroyed by fire around 200 BC during the Second Punic War, after a brief reoccupation around 100 BC. Four walls from different periods survive, forming an elliptical enclosure, grid-pattern streets, dwellings, metalworking forges, silos and House A, an aristocratic residence with seven rooms. Excavated since 1970, it has been a bien cultural de interés nacional (the highest heritage protection status in Catalonia) since 2009.

Photo: ESM (CC BY-SA 3.0)

What to see and do in Tornabous