Emporium (antiquity)

As emporium (Greek ἐμπόριον ) in the ancient Greek since Herodotus, an independent market and trading center of a town called, was created as a commercial establishment outside of the mother country or was entertained in the home country itself as a transit point for foreign goods. Since ancient times, the long-distance trade was largely conducted through the coastal shipping, it is usually around a harbor. As early appearance of ancient trade relations, an emporium was often the starting point for subsequent settlement and colony -ups. In research, the term is used to distinguish it from colony -ups, which were created as a full-fledged polis and were independent after a start-up phase of their native city.

Modern, such a venue to be addressed as a free port with commodity exchange, which had special own customs, monetary and trading rights. Typical and well known example is Naucratis, as the only Greek settlement - could be established in Egypt - with the significant contribution of the city of Miletus. Empúries, also Ampurias, in northern Spain still has in his present name to the " emporium " back, which had invested in the 6th century BC in the far west of the Greeks. Another well-known emporium is Massalia, founded in the 6th century BC by the Phokaier.