Where Are the Lost Cities of Europe

Lost Cities of Europe

Europe Lost Cities

Lost Cities of Europe

"Lost" cities are cities that were once thriving metropolitan areas whose locations and other characteristics have since been lost due to the passage of time. Although European cities, as we understand them, did not develop until the time of the Geek and Roman Empires there are many locations that were either "built over" by later inhabitants or whose locations were simply forgotten.

Although not geographically in Europe, perhaps the most famous lost city to be associated with the continent is the city of Troy. For many centuries this city was thought to exist only in the words of the Greek poet Homer but, since its rediscovery in the late 1800s, it is now known to have been an actual city which was the focal point of a long war with the city-states of ancient Greece.

A pair of lost cities dating from the height of the Roman Empire, Herculaneum and Pompeii, were discovered in the early 1700s by farmers who accidentally uncovered pottery and statues that had been buried by an eruption of a nearby volcano in 79 AD. Until their rediscovery, the only references to these cities' existence could be found in books written within 100 years of the eruption which buried the area under several feet of volcanic ash.

Much of modern day Rome is built on the rubble of older buildings, many dating back to the first century and the days of early Christianity. The same is true for the city of Paris, although it did not become a major city until several centuries after the fall of Rome.

Although most European cities were never "lost" in the strictest sense of the word, much work remains to be done in discovering their historical foundations

Recommended hotels - Lost Cities of Europe

Lost Cities of Europe destination guide