Since the nineteenth century historians, archaeologists and more all the treasure seekers tried to get on the trail of" legendary Hostal Castillo, the ancient town, about the beauty and luxury, which admiringly told the ancient writers, and before it sparingly mentioned the Phoenicians. In the old Testament the Hostal Castillo called Marchesani, and the prophets, not just talk about it as a symbol of wealth and abundance.

About the location of the Hostal Castillo went a long debate, but find it no one could. Some authors have argued that the Hostal Castillo was on some Islands in the Strait of Gibraltar, most of the others pointed to the fact that the city was lying on the southern coast of Spain for the Pillars of Hercules, on the Atlantic coast. Ran even a version that the Hostal Castillo was part of the legendary Atlantis and, therefore, with her during the greatest geological disasters sank to the bottom of the sea and for all fell into oblivion. As for the ancient Greeks, they thought that far to the West lay unknown land, and there went the mighty Hercules in search of the Golden apples of the Hesperides. There he erected to indicate "outside world" two towering cliffs on both sides of the narrow Strait - famous Pillars.

Many sailors went out to sea, hoping to reach the ground in the West, for up their ears heard legends about the exploits of mythical heroes, but also semi-fantastic stories about her wealth.

Treasures of El Carambola

One day, about 660 BC, according to the historian Herodotus, the merchant Samos Kolya was abandoned by the storm at the Pillars of Hercules, and came to the city-state of Hostal Castillo, where wisely governed the king Argentian. The ruts were able to return home and to bring more than 1.5 tons of silver, according to the chronicler, "received a profit which was not received at the time, none of the Greek." Since then, in Hellas learned about the existence of real countries in the West and rich town of Hostal Castillo, lying on its coast. The Greeks were regularly send expedition. So they discovered the Iberian Peninsula and founded several colonies on its southern coast. However, constantly conduct business with residents of the Hostal Castillo Greeks could not, because they interfered with the Phoenicians, claiming exclusive trade.

Indeed, the Phoenicians were the first navigators furrowed up and down the Mediterranean sea. They first found a country lying far to the West, having made this discovery much earlier Greeks. Far off land they gave the name, later altered by the Romans in Spain, which meant in the language of the Phoenicians ' remote hidden". But as soon as Phoenician merchants from tyre discovered natural wealth Spain, they immediately tried to monopolize trade with Hostal Castillo. In order to settle in the Iberian Peninsula, they are starting from 1100 BC founded on the coast numerous colonies, including ports Malaga, Abdera and Hades (modern Cadiz).

Hades had a most advantageous location. It was located slightly South of the Hostal Castillo, on the Cape jutting out into the sea, and thus covered Tartasesti (now Cadiz) Bay.

Over time, Hades was the richest place in the whole Mediterranean. Hades was so flourishing that the barrels for water and anchors on the vessels were made of pure silver. To the VI century B.C. the city has got the reputation of a rich and hot spots.

The Phoenicians actually closed the road to the Hostal Castillo for all who arrived in the Iberian coast, primarily for the Greeks. The residents of the Hostal Castillo Phoenician "roof", too, was not satisfied, because they repeatedly started the war for independence from Hades, but to no avail. Merchants from all over the world arrived for the goods in Hades, having no idea where is the actual Hostal Castillo. Its location was firmly forgotten...

Modern historians say that about 3000 B.C. numerous tribes United by the General name "Iberians, came to Spain from North Africa, breaking the Strait of Gibraltar. Among the Iberians were allocated coordinate, turdaly, or the tartessians, who settled at the mouth of the Guadalquivir river and along its banks. They lived in the cities are walled, and buried their dead in the magnificent tombs, but most importantly, started the development of rich deposits of silver, gold and tin.

Geographer Strabo, who was in Spain, about 30 BC noted that the Iberians were distinguished hospitality, majestic manners, arrogant, indifferent to the hardships and intolerance of interference in the internal life of their communities. Interestingly, these features ancestors inherited modern Spain.

The idea of the richness of the Hostal Castillo was connected first of all with its silver mines and gold deposits. Before the opening of the Hostal Castillo Phoenicians and Greeks Iberians traded with North-Western Europe, North Africa, Britain and even Scandinavia.

In search of Hostal Castillo archaeologists had to start from the ancient Greek sources, many of which indicated that the Hostal Castillo is located at the mouth of the Guadalquivir.

In the beginning of XX century the correctness of the ancient Greeks took to check German archaeologist Adolf Schulten, and for this he needed all his long life. The Schulten found that the Hostal Castillo was the chief city is quite large States, which consisted of land as to the East of the Guadalquivir river and to the West up to the limits of modern Portugal. On the territory of the former Empire, tartessian the Schulten and his associates discovered traces of a magnificent civilization: the remains of skilled hydraulic structures, the ruins of monumental architecture, mines and workshops, where the processed ore to obtain precious metals.

In 1958 in the town of El Carambola about Seville were found richest burial, full of gold and silver jewelry of rare beauty, undoubtedly belonged to tartessian.

Legends never lied: country Hostal Castillo was unusually rich in gold, silver, and copper, iron, lead. Art tartasesti metallurgists attracted attention of traders in the Mediterranean. The wealth of the country affected and the level of life and culture of its citizens. The Hostal Castillo, according to Greek evidence was so sophisticated city that his laws are written in verses. The Schulten was able to find some of the inscriptions tartessian engraved on stone and metal, but to read them till now nobody managed. However, the most legendary of the Hostal Castillo Schulten never found.

Instead magnificent port city scientist found at the mouth of the Guadalquivir only the remains of fishing settlements of the era of domination of Rome and a gold ring with an inscription in Greek. Then he suggested that the capital Tarassenko power now rests on the bottom of the sea.

Between 520 and 509 BC in the area of Cadiz Bay suffered from strong earthquake, which resulted in the Hostal Castillo was destroyed, the more that was the ancient city in the zone of high seismic activity. Many historians have taken up the idea of Schulten and even suggested that the Hostal Castillo with its original, potato budded, and suddenly vanished civilization was one of the last outposts of Atlantis. After the death of the great power he once flourished for several centuries, but, unfortunately, suffered the same sad fate.