Archaeologists in Spain have discovered a possible hidden Roman Empire from over 2,000 years ago.
A team of researchers from the University of Cádiz began exploring an area in the Sierra de Cádiz region last year in the hope of finding just a few remnants of ancient life there.
Instead, they were stunned to come across 57 sites from the Roman Empire – which they believe could all be connected, based on trade and communication routes, according to the Independent.
Now they are looking more closely at how the sites are connected, marking the first time ancient Roman settlements there have been analyzed in detail.
“The objective is to know the interaction between the Gulf of Cadiz and the settlement of the Guadalete River depression during the Roman period, an aspect that is practically unknown so far,” the researchers said in a report.
The settlements, located in the areas around Arcos de la Frontera, Bornos, Villamartin and Puerto Serrano, would all have been linked by the Guadalete River in the Spanish province of Cádiz, leading researchers to believe they were part of a hidden empire, the Independent noted .
The Romans settled around the Guadalete River after they conquered Spain in 264 BC.