The sea and navigation played a fundamental role in the transformation of the way of life of the inhabitants of the coast of Gipuzkoa during the Roman Empire.
Classical texts and archaeology bear witness to the changes, including the presence of settlements by the sea and the transformation of the materials, techniques and types of boats used. What is now Getaria was then a settlement located on a cliff on the edge of the Cantabrian Sea, with a splendid natural harbour, sheltered by an islet from the N-NW winds. Its inhabitants formed part of the maritime activities developed by the largest empire of the first centuries of our era.
Fishing was of paramount importance in the way of life of its inhabitants. At the same time, it was part of the economic networks established by the towns to the east of the Bay of Biscay - Burdigala (Bordeaux), Lapurdum (Bayonne), Oiasso (Irun), etc. -. An important part of the ceramics from the Roman period recovered from the excavations of Zarautz Jauregia in those cities is an example of this.
During the last two centuries of the empire, the period known as the Lower Empire, as the imperial economic and political structures declined, the regional and regional economic and political networks in the eastern sector of the Bay of Biscay were strengthened. This reinforcement was of paramount importance for the survival of communities such as Getaria after the end of the Empire.