Around 800-600 BC the Greeks began to expand their trading networks. In particular, they expanded outwards towards the western edge of the Mediterranean. Initially the desire for minerals essential for the production of bronze, a central focus of trade, could be met by the Etruscans of northern Italy. However, in the mid-7th century BC a number of Greek explorers known as the Phocaeans travelled through the Strait of Gibraltar and round to the south-western Atlantic coast of Iberia. Here they set up trading networks with the mineral- and silver-rich kingdom of Tartessos. As well as seeking to trade, some Greeks also settled in parts of Iberia, as they did in parts of the south of France.

This early contact with the Greek world shaped the nature of Iberian culture, particularly in the southern part of the Peninsula where it developed in a way similar to that seen in Mediterranean region. By the 4th century BC, large settlements began to develop the characteristics of cities, with centralised political organisation. As a result of this increased political complexity a distinctive form of Iberian writing began to develop. Some of the objects made and used in these areas also saw a fusion of Greek and Iberia ideas and styles.