Dertosa’s urban evolution has been strongly shaped by its Iberian origins as it started from an indigenous settlement on Suda hill which spread across its slopes until it reached the river bank. Dertosa’s urban layout was much more uneven than it is today. A large part of the city was built on terraces enclosed by retaining walls.

The wall in front of you bridges a sharp rise in the natural ground level and separates a shelf near the river from a terrace higher up. Archaeological excavations have shown that today’s Cruera Street is the result of the fossilisation of ancient Roman bench terracing.