Carmona, the Morning Star of Europe

Carmona, a 30-minute drive from Seville, is the second largest city in the area in terms of history and culture. Despite its small size, it houses a fascinating heritage.Its historical importance over the centuries has made it one of the oldest cities in Europe: man has lived here, in fact, for more than 5000 years. Already the Carthaginians noticed the strategic importance of its position and to them we owe some of the oldest buildings, to the Romans we owe the urban layout of the city and each of the people who succeeded left obvious traces of their culture. As you can imagine, the historical heritage of Carmona is priceless, so much so that the town is known as "El Lucero de Europa", the "Morning Star of Europe".And if the past echoes in the squares, palaces and churches, the present is no less: city festivals, popular traditions and excellent gastronomy make Carmona a city to be experienced all year round. The old town of Carmona is located on the top of a hill to the west of the modern part. The entrance to the old town is through the monumental Puerta de Sevilla: built by the Carthaginians in the ninth century BC and still perfectly preserved, it is the main gate of a system of walls and towers within which is enclosed the old town. Unfortunately, most of the walls have been destroyed over the centuries, but there are still other beautiful gates: Puerta de Córdoba of Roman times, one of the best vantage points of the city, and Puerta de Marchena, located at the southern end of the old town. With a few euros you can visit the Alcázar de la Puerta de Sevilla: looking at the building you can easily identify the different stages of construction (Carthaginian, Roman, Islamic and Christian). To learn more about the fascinating history of the city and the alternation of cultures that makes it so fascinating, visit the Museo de la Ciudad, a city museum housed in an elegant building built between the 16th and 18th centuries.