Arta, Gulf Of (anc. Sinus Ambracius), an inlet of the Ionian Sea, 25 m. long and 10 broad, most of the northern shores of which belong to Turkey, the southern and eastern to Greece. Its only important affluent, besides the Arta, is the Luro (anc. Charadra), also from the north. The gulf abounds with mullets, soles and eels. Around its shores are numerous ruins of ancient cities: Actium at the entrance, where the famous battle was fought in 31 B.C.; Nicopolis, Argos, Limnaea and Olpae; and several flourishing towns, such as Preveza, Arta (anc. Ambracia), Karavasara or Karbasaras, and Vonitza.
The river Arta (anc. Arachthus or Aratthus, in Livy xxxviii. 3, Aretho) is the chief river of Epirus, and is said to have been navigable in ancient times as far as Ambracia. Below this town it flows through a marshy plain, consisting mainly of its own alluvium; its upper course is through the territory of the Molossians; its total length is about 80 m.
