Here and there in the Balearic islands you will see resorts, hotels or restaurants named Mare Nostrum (Our Sea). This was a Roman name for the Mediterranean, especially at the height of her power when she had territories circumscribing the Mediterranean.
What a remarkable sea it has been and continues to be. It's believed that the most recent refill from the Atlantic was 5 million years ago, during the Zanclean Flood. Water rushed in at the Straits of Gibraltar at 1000 times the flow of the Amazon and brought the Mediterranean to its current level over months or years.
Compared to the oceans it is relatively calm and navigable, nurturing the development of civilisations around it. It is the cradle of European and Near East culture. Invasions flowed and ebbed, but goods and ideas were also traded, giving us the rich mix of history and culture in countries bordering Mare Nostrum.
Compared to the oceans it is relatively calm and navigable, nurturing the development of civilisations around it. It is the cradle of European and Near East culture. Invasions flowed and ebbed, but goods and ideas were also traded, giving us the rich mix of history and culture in countries bordering Mare Nostrum.
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