In ancient times, stone was one of the main materials used in building. Each city had its own local quarries, although it was quite common to import types of stone not found in the area, usually by sea. The most common imported material was marble.

Mainly calcareous stone was quarried in the area around Tarragona. We know of about a dozen quarries, the most spectacular of which, both for its size and its state of preservation, is El Mèdol.

El Mèdol is a large crater, some 200 metres long and between 10 and 40 metres wide, excavated over a long period of quarrying during Roman times. At its centre a needle of rock has been left unexcavated.

The stone from El Mèdol is a golden-yellow coloured Miocene lumaquela. It is very easy to work and was used on a large number of Tarraco's most important buildings. It is also thought that the quarry was used in medieval times. The stone blocks were transported to the city along the Via Herculea, later known as the Via Augusta, which passed by a short distance from the quarry.

It has been calculated that approximately 50,000 cubic metres of rock were cut from the quarry.