The history of Amalfi is bound with the sea.

Thanks to its sailors, Amalfi was knew in the Mediterranean sea. The name of Amalfi still appaired on an official letter of the Pope Gregorio Magno, in 596, when he spoke about the Amalfi's trades.

Amalfi, at the end of VIII century had already colonies; the first was Antiochia, while the first colonies, in Egypt, are dated, since the X century. In fact, in 954, in the town of "Al- Cairo" lived about 200 Amalfithain merchants.

In those ages, the Republic of Amalfi was the only place where di Arab people could have trade reports.

Suddenly the Amalphitain colonies grow up on the coast of the Mediterranean. The principal colonies were al Mahdia, a Kairuan, al Cairo, ad Alessandria, ad Accon , a Laodicea, a Beirut, a Giaffa, a Cipro, a Tripoli di Siria, a Gerusalemme, ad Antiochia, a Bisanzio

The biggest colony was Bisanzio, that already existed before 992, as remembered an official document of the Emperor Costantino and Basilio od Bisanzio.

This colony had a private harbour, churches, monastries (like the monastry of S.Maria Latina and S.Salvatore)