\paperw3495 \margr0\margl0 \plain \fs20 \f1 \fs22 According to tradition the city was founded around 733 BC by colonists from Corinth. One of the earliest areas occupie
d by the settlement was the small peninsula of Orthygia, which in antiquity was connected with the mainland by a narrow isthmus that later disappeared. The location was ideal owing to the presence of fresh water (the famous Arthusa spring), the ease of l
anding, and the possibility of controlling the plains further inland from a protected position. At the same time the settlement began to spread onto the mainland. \par