Road station

Muziris

Cranganūr

Muziris, today Cranganore, was the pepper port of Rome's trade with southern India. Tamil poems tell how the fine ships of the Yavanas, the westerners, came with gold and sailed home with pepper, while the town echoed with their noise. The Roman writer Pliny calls it the first market of India, but warns of pirates and of an anchorage so far offshore that cargoes had to be ferried in by small boats. The map sets it beside a large lake, true to its lagoons, and nearby marks a temple of Augustus, credible though known from no other source.

Find Muziris on the interactive Roman map →

Auf Deutsch anhören · All place stories · More places in India