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ALESSA (Ancient city) SICILY
Alaesa or Halesa (Alaisa, Diod.; Strab.; Ptol.; Halesa, Sil. Ital.
xiv. 218; Halesini, Cic. Plin.), a city of Sicily, situated near the north coast
of the island, between Cephaloedium and Calacta. It was of Siculian origin, and
its foundation is related by Diodorus, who informs us that in B.C. 403 the inhabitants
of Herbita (a Siculian city), having concluded peace with Dionysius of Syracuse,
their ruler or chief magistrate Archonides determined to quit the city and found
a new colony, which he settled partly with citizens of Herbita, and partly with
mercenaries and other strangers who collected around him through enmity towards
Dionysius. He gave to this new colony the name of Alaesa, to which the epithet
Archonidea was frequently added for the purpose of distinction. Others attributed
the foundation of the city, but erroneously, to the Carthaginians. (Diod. xiv.
16.) It quickly rose to prosperity by maritime commerce: and at the commencement
of the First Punic War was one of the first of the Sicilian cities to make its
submission to the Romans, to whose alliance it continued steadily faithful. It
was doubtless to its conduct in this respect, and to the services that it was
able to render to the Romans during their wars in Sicily, that it was indebted
for the peculiar privilege of retaining its own laws and independence, exempt
from all taxation:--an advantage enjoyed by only five cities of Sicily. (Diod.
xiv. 16, xxiii. Exc. H. p. 501; Cic. Verr. ii. 4. 9, 69, iii. 6.) In consequence
of this advantageous position it rose rapidly in wealth and prosperity, and became
one of the most flourishing cities of Sicily. On one occasion its citizens, having
been involved in disputes among themselves concerning the choice of the senate,
C. Claudius Pulcher was sent, at their own request in B.C. 95, to regulate the
matter by a law, which he did to the satisfaction of all parties. But their privileges
did not protect them from the exactions of Verres, who imposed on them an enormous
contribution both in corn and money. (Id. ib. 73--75; Ep. ad Farn. xiii. 32.)
The city appears to have subsequently declined, and had sunk in the time of Augustus
to the condition of an ordinary municipal town (Castell. Inscr. p. 27): but was
still one of the few places on the north coast of Sicily which Strabo deemed worthy
of mention. (Strab. vi. p. 272.) Pliny also enumerates it among the stipendiariae
civitates of Sicily. (H. N. iii. 8.)
Great difference of opinion has existed with regard to the site of
Alaesa, arising principally from the discrepancy in the distances assigned by
Strabo, the Itinerary, and the Tabula. Some of these are undoubtedly corrupt or
erroneous, but on the whole there can be no doubt that its situation is correctly
fixed by Cluverius and Torremuzza at the spot marked by an old church called Sta.
Maria le Palate, near the modern town of Tusa, and above the river Pettineo. This
site coincides perfectly with the expression of Diodorus (xiv. 16), that the town
was built on a hill about 8 stadia from the sea: as well as with the distance
of eighteen M. P. from Cephaloedium assigned by the Tabula. (The Itinerary gives
28 by an easy error.) The ruins described by Fazello as visible there in his time
were such as to indicate the site of a large city, and several inscriptions have
been found on the spot, some of them referring distinctly to Alaesa. One of these,
which is of considerable length and importance, gives numerous local details concerning
the divisions of land, &c., and mentions repeatedly a river Alaesus, evidently
the same with the Halesus of Columella (x. 268), and which is probably the modern
Pettineo ; as well as a fountain named Ipybrha. This is perhaps the same spoken
of by Solinus (5. § 20) and Priscian (Perieges. 500), but without mentioning its
name, as existing in the territory of Halesa, the waters of which were swoln and
agitated by the sound of music. Fazello describes the ruins as extending from
the sea-shore, on which were the remains of a large building (probably baths),
for the space of more than a mile to the summit of a hill, on which were the remains
of the citadel. About 3 miles further inland was a large fountain (probably the
Ipyrrha of the inscription), with extensive remains of the. aqueduct that conveyed
its waters to the city. All trace of these ruins has now disappeared, except some
portions of the aqueduct: but fragments of statues, as well as coins and inscriptions,
have been frequently discovered on the spot. (Fazell. de Reb. Sic. ix. 4; Cluver.
Sicil. pp. 288--290; Boeckh, C. I. tom. iii. pp. 612--621; Castelli, Hist. Alaesae,
Panorm, 1753; Id. Inscr. Sic. p. 109; Biscari, Viaggio in Sicilia, p. 243.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited July 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
CEFALU (Town) SICILY
Cephaloedium (Kephaloidion, Diod., Strab., but Kephaloidis, Ptol.,
and Pliny also has Cephaloedis: Eth. Cephaloeditanus: Cefalu), a town on the N.
coast of Sicily, between Himera and Alaesa. It evidently derived its name from
its situation on a lofty and precipitous rock, forming a bold headland (Kephale)
projecting into the sea. But though its name proves it to have been of Greek origin,
no mention is found of it in Thucydides, who expressly says that Himera was the
only Greek colony on this coast of the island (vi. 62); it is probable that Cephaloedium
was at this time merely a fortress (phrouphion) belonging to the Himeraeans, and
may very likely have been first peopled by refugees after the destruction of Himera.
Its name first appears in history at the time of the Carthaginian expedition under
Himilco, B.C. 396, when that general concluded a treaty with the Himeraeans and
the inhabitants of Cephaloediunm. (Diod. xiv. 56.) But after the defeat of the
Carthaginian armament, Dionysius made himself master of Cephaloedium, which was
betrayed into his hands. (Id. ib. 78.) At a later period we find it again independent,
but apparently on friendly terms with the Carthaginians, on which account it was
attacked and taken by Agathocles, B.C. 307. (Id. xx. 56.) In the First Punic War
it was reduced by the Roman fleet under Atilius Calatinus and Scipio Nasica, B.C.
254, but by treachery and not by force of arms. (Id. xxiii., Exc. Hoesch. p. 505.)
Cicero speaks of it as apparently a flourishing town, enjoying full municipal
privileges; it was, in his time, one of the civitates decumanae which paid the
tithes of their corn in kind to the Roman state, and suffered severely from the
oppressions and exactions of Verres. (Cic. Verr. ii. 5. 2, iii. 43.) No subsequent
mention of it is found in history, but it is noticed by Strabo, Pliny, and Ptolemy,
among the towns of Sicily, and at a later period its name is still found in the
Itineraries. (Strab. vi. p. 266; Plin. iii. 8. s. 14; Ptol. iii. 4. § 3; Itin.
Ant. p. 92; Tab. Peut.) It appears to have continued to exist on the ancient site,
till the 12th century, when Roger I., king of Sicily, transferred it from its
almost inaccessible position to one at the foot of the rock, where there was a
small but excellent harbour. (Fazell. de Reb. Sic. ix. 3.) Some remains of the
ancient city are still visible, on the summit of the rock; but the nature of the
site proves that it could never have been more than a small town, and probably
owed its importance only to its almost impregnable position. Fazello speaks of
the remains of the walls as still existing in his time, as well as those of a
temple of Doric architecture, of which the foundations only are now visible. But
the most curious monument still remaining of the ancient city is an edifice, consisting
of various apartments, and having the appearance of a palace or domestic residence,
but constructed wholly of large irregular blocks of limestone, in the style commonly
called polygonal or Cyclopean. Rude mouldings approximating to those of the Doric
order, are hewn on the face of the massive blocks. This building, which is almost
unique of its kind, is the more remarkable, from its being the only example of
this style of masonry, so common in Central Italy, which occurs in the island
of Sicily. It is fully described and figured by Dr. Nott in the Annali dell'Instituto
di Corrispondenza Archeologica, for the year 1831 (vol. iii. p. 270-287).
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited August 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
PANORMOS (Ancient city) SICILY
Panormus (Panormos: Eth. Panormites, Panormitanus: Palermo), one of
the most important cities of Sicily, situated on the N. coast of the island, about
50 miles from its NW. extremity, on an extensive bay, which is now known as the
Gulf of Palermo. The name is evidently Greek, and derived from the excellence
of its port, or, more strictly speaking, of the anchorage in its spacious bay.
(Diod. xxii. 10.) But Panormus was not a Greek colony; it was undoubtedly of Phoenician
origin, and appears to have been one of the earliest settlements of that people
in Sicily. Hence, when the increasing power of the Greek colonies in the island
compelled the Phoenicians to concentrate themselves in its more westerly portion,
Panormus, together with Motya and Solus, became one of the chief seats of their
power. (Thuc. vi. 2.) We find no mention of the Phoenician name of Panormus, though
it may fairly be presumed that this Greek appellation was not that used by the
colonists themselves. It would be natural enough to suppose that the Greek name
was only a translation of the Phoenician one ; but the Punic form of the name,
which is found on coins, is read Machanath, which signifies a camp, like the Roman
Castra, and has no reference to the port. (Gesenius, Monum. Phoen. p. 288; Mover's
Phonizier, vol. iii. p. 335.)
We have no account of the early history of any of these Phoenician
colonies in Sicily, or of the process by which they were detached from the dependence
of the another country and became dependencies of Carthage; though it is probable
that the change took place when Phoenicia itself became subject to the Persian
monarchy. But it is certain that Carthage already held this kind of supremacy
over the Sicilian colonies when we first meet with the name of Panormus in history.
This is not till B.C. 480, when the great Carthaginian armament under Hamilcar
landed there and made it their head-quarters before advancing against Himera.
(Diod. xi. 20.) From this time it bore an important part in the wars of the Carthaginians
in Sicily, and seems to have gradually become the acknowledged capital of their
dominion in the island. (Polyb. i. 38.) Thus, it is mentioned in the war of B.C.
406 as one of their principal naval stations (Diod. xiii. 88); and again in B.C.
397 it was one of the few cities which remained faithful to the Carthaginians
at the time of the siege of Motya. (Id. xiv. 48.) In B.C. 383 it is again noticed
as the head-quarters of the Carthaginians in the island (Id. xv. 17); and it is
certain that it was never taken, either by Dionysius or by the still more powerful
Agathocles. But in B.C. 276, Pyrrhus, after having subdued all the other cities
in Sicily held by the Carthaginians, except Lilybaeum and Panormus, attacked and
made himself master of the latter city also. (Id. xxii. 10. p. 498.) It, however,
soon fell again into the hands of the Carthaginians, who held it at the outbreak
of the First Punic War, B.C. 264. It was at this time the most important city
of their dominions in the island, and generally made the head-quarters both of
their armies and fleets; but was nevertheless taken with but little difficulty
by the Roman consuls Atilius Calatinus and Cn. Cornelius Scipio in B.C. 254. (Polyb.
i. 21, 24, 38; Zonar. viii. 14; Diod. xxiii. 18 p. 505.) After this it became
one of the principal naval stations of the Romans throughout the remainder of
the war, and for the same reason became a point of the utmost importance for their
strategic operations. (Diod. xxiii. 19, 21, xxiv. 1; Polyb. i. 39, 55, &c.) It
was-immediately under the walls of Panormus that the Carthaginians under Hasdrubal
were defeated by L. Caecilius Metellus in B.C. 250, in one of the most decisive
battles of the whole war. (Polyb. i. 40: Zonar. viii. 14; Oros. iv. 9.) It was
here, also that the Romans had to maintain a long-continued struggle with Hamilcar
Barca, who had seized on the remarkable isolated mountain called Ercta, forming
a kind of natural fortress only about a mile and a half from Panormus, and succeeded
in maintaining himself there for the space of three years, notwithstanding all
the efforts of the Romans to dislodge him. They were in consequence compelled
to maintain an intrenched camp in front of Panormus, at a distance of only five
stadia from the foot of the mountain, throughout this protracted contest. (Polyb.
i. 56, 57.)
After the Roman conquest of Sicily, Panormus became a municipal town,
but enjoyed a privileged condition, retaining its nominal freedom, and immunity
from the ordinary burdens imposed on other towns of the province. (Cic. Verr.
iii. 6) It was in consequence a flourishing and populous town, and the place where
the courts of law were held for the whole surrounding district. (Id. ib. ii. 26,
v. 7.) Cicero notices it at this time as one of the principal maritime and commercial
cities of the island. (Ib. v. 27.) In the settlement of the affairs of Sicily
which seems to have followed the war with Sextus Pompeius, Panormus lost its liberty,
but received a Roman colony (Strab. vi. p. 272), whence we find it bearing in
inscriptions the title of Colonia Augusta Panormitanorum. It would seem from Dion
Cassius that it received this colony in B.C. 20; and coins, as well as the testimony
of Strabo, prove incontestably that it became a colony under Augustus. It is strange,
therefore, that Pliny, who notices all the other colonies founded by that emperor
in Sicily, has omitted all mention of Panornus as such, and ranks it merely as
an ordinary municipal town. (Plin. iii. 8. s. 14; Dion Cass. liv. 7; Eckhel, vol.
i. p. 232 ; Orell. Inscr. 948, 3760.) It subsequently received an accession of
military colonists under Vespasian, and again under Hadrian. (Lib. Colon. p. 211;
Zumpt, de Colon. p. 410.) Numerous inscriptions prove that it continued to be
a flourishing provincial town throughout the period of the Roman empire ; and
its name is repeatedly mentioned in the Itineraries (Itin. Ant. pp. 91, 97; Tab.
Peut.; Castell. Inscr. Sicil. pp. 26, 27, &c.); but it is certain that it did
not attain in ancient times to the predominant position which it now enjoys. It
fell into the hands of the Goths, together with the rest of Sicily, and was the
last city of the island that was wrested from them by Belisarius in A.D. 535.
(Procop. B. G. i. 5, 8.) After this it continued subject to the Byzantine empire
till 835, when it was taken by the Saracens, who selected it as the capital of
their dominions in the land. It retained this position under the Norman kings,
and is still the capital of Sicily, and by far the most populous city in the island,
containing above 160,000 inhabitants.
The situation of Palermo almost vies in beauty with that of Naples.
Its beautiful bay affords an excellent roadstead, from whence it doubtless derived
its name; and the inner or proper harbour, though not large, is well sheltered
and secure. The ancient city probably occupied the site immediately around the
port, but there are no means of tracing its topography, as the ground is perfectly
level, without any natural features, and all ancient remains have disappeared,
or are covered by modern buildings. We learn that it consisted of an outer and
inner city; the former, as might be supposed, being the more recent of the two,
and thence called the New City (he nea polis). Each had its separate enclosure
of walls, so that when the outer city was taken by the Romans, the inner was still
able for some time to withstand their efforts. (Polyb. i. 38; Diod. xxiii. 18.)
The only ancient remains now visible at Palermo are some slight vestiges of an
amphitheatre near the Royal Palace; but numerous inscriptions, as well as fragments
of sculpture and other objects of antiquity, have been discovered on the site,
and are preserved in the museum at Palermo.
The coins of Panormus are numerous: the more ancient ones have Punic
inscriptions, and belong to the period when the city was subject to the Carthaginians,
but the beauty of their workmanship shows the unequivocal influence of Greek art.
The later ones (struck after the Roman conquest, but while the city still enjoyed
nominal freedom) have the legend in Greek letters PANOPMITAN. Still later are
those of the Roman colony, with Latin legends. On these, as well as in inscriptions,
the name is frequently written Panhormitanorum; and this orthography, which is
found also in the best MSS. of Cicero, seems to have been the usual one in Roman
times. (Eckhel, vol. i. p. 232; Zumpt, ad Cic. Verr. ii. 26.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited August 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
SOLUNTO (Ancient city) SICILY
Solus or Soluntum (Soloeis, Thuc.; Solous, Diod.: Eth. Solountinos,
Diod., but coins have Solontinos; Soluntinus: Solanto), a city of Sicily, situated
on the N. coast of the island, about 12 miles E. of Panormus, and immediately
to the E. of the bold promontory called Capo Zaffarana. It was a Phoenician colony,
and from its proximity to Panormus was one of the few which that people retained
when they gave way before the advance of the Greek colonies in Sicily, and withdrew
to the NW. corner of the island. (Thuc. vi. 2.) It afterwards passed together
with Panormus and Motya into the hands of the Carthaginians, or at least became
a dependency of that people. It continued steadfast to the Carthaginian alliance
even in B.C. 397, when the formidable armanent of Dionysius shook the fidelity
of most of their allies (Diod. xiv. 48); its territory was in consequence ravaged
by Dionysius, but without effect. At a later period of the war (B.C. 396) it.
was betrayed into the hands of that despot (Ib. 78), but probably soon fell again
into the power of the Carthaginians. It was certainly one of the cities that usually
formed part of their dominions in the island; and in B.C. 307 it was given up
by them to the soldiers and mercenaries of Agathocles, who had made peace with
the Carthaginians when abandoned by their leader in Africa. (Diod. xx. 69.) During
the First Punic War we find it still subject to Carthage, and it was not till
after the fall of Panormus that Soluntum also opened its gates to the Romans.
(Id. xxiii. p. 505.) It continued to subsist under the Roman dominion as a municipal
town, but apparently one of no great consideration, as its name is only slightly
and occasicnally mentioned by Cicero. (Verr. ii. 42, iii. 43.) But it is still
noticed both by Pliny and Ptolemy (Plin. iii. 8. s. 14; Ptol. iii. 4. § 3, where
the name is corruptly written Oloulis), as well as at a later period by the Itineraries,
which place it 12 miles from Panormus and 12 from Thermae (Termini). (Itin, Ant.
p. 91; Tab. Peut.) It is probable that its complete destruction dates from the
time of the Saracens.
At the present day the site of the ancient city is wholly desolate
and uninhabited. It stood on a lofty hill, now called the Monte Catalfano, at
the foot of which is a small cove or port, with a fort, still called the Castello
di Solanto, and a station for the tunny fishery. The traces of two ancient roads,
paved with large blocks of stone, which led up to the city, may still be followed,
and the whole summit of the hill is covered with fragments of ancient walls and
foundations of buildings. Among these may be traced the remains of two temples,
of which some capitals, portions of friezes, &c. have been discovered; but it
is impossible to trace the plan and design of these or any other edifices. They
are probably all of them of the period of the Roman dominion. Several cisterns
for water also remain, as well as sepulchres; and some fragments of sculpture
of considerable merit have been discovered on the site. (Fazell. de Reb. Sic.
viii. p. 352; Amico, Lex. Top. vol. ii. pp. 192-195; Hoare's Class. Tour, vol.
ii. p. 234; Serra di Falco, Ant. della Sicilia, vol. v. pp. 60-67.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited September 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
YKARA (Ancient city) SICILY
Hyccara or Hycara (Hukkara, Thuc.; Hnkara, Diod, Steph: B.: Eth. Hukareus,
Id.), a small town on the N. coast of Sicily between Panormus and the port of
Segesta. Thucydides tells us it was a Sicanian town; and it appears to have been
independent of, and on hostile terms with, the neighbouring city of Segesta. Hence,
during the Athenian expedition to Sicily, B.C. 415, Nicias, as he was proceeding
with the fleet along the N. coast of the island, landed at Hyccara, which he took
and plundered, and afterwards made it over to the Segestans. (Thuc. vi. 62; Diod.
xiii. 6.) The Athenians are said to have realised 100 talents by the booty thus
acquired: among the captives taken on this occasion was the celebrated courtesan
Lais, then a mere child, who was carried to Corinth and there sold as a slave.
(Plut. Nic. 15, Alcib. 39; Athen. xiii. p. 589; Paus. ii. 2. § 5; Steph. B. s.
v. Hukara; Schol. in Aristoph. Plut. 179.) No subsequent notice of Hyccara is
found in history: it probably continued to be but a small place, and a mere dependency
of Segesta or Panormus: but it did not cease to exist, for its name reappears
in the Itinerary of Antoninus (pp. 91, 97), which places it M. P. from Panormus,
proceeding along the coast to the westward. This distance coincides with a place
called Muro di Carini, where, according to Fazello, the ruins of an ancient town
were still visible in his time. The modern town of Carini (the name of which is
probably derived from that of Hyccara) has been removed to a distance of three
miles inland. (Fazell. de Reb. Sic. vii. 6; Cluver. Sicil. p. 272.)
This text is from: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854) (ed. William Smith, LLD). Cited September 2004 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ALESSA (Ancient city) SICILY
or Alaesa (Alaisa). A town on the northern coast of Sicily, on the river Halesus, founded by the Greek mercenaries of Archonides, a chief of the Siculi, and originally called Archonidion.
ENGYON (Ancient city) SICILY
A town in the interior of Sicily, possessing a celebrated temple of the great mother of the gods.
PANORMOS (Ancient city) SICILY
(Panormos). Now Palermo; an important town on the north coast
of Sicily, founded by the Phoenicians, and which at a later time received its
Greek name from its excellent harbour. From the Phoenicians it passed into the
hands of the Carthaginians, and was taken by the Romans in the First Punic War,
B.C. 254. Cicero speaks of it as a place of considerable commercial importance.
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YKARA (Ancient city) SICILY
(ta Hukkara). A town of the Sicani on the north coast of Sicily, west of Panormus, taken by the Athenians, and its inhabitants sold as slaves, B.C. 415. Among the captives was the beautiful Timandra, the mistress of Alcibiades and the mother of Lais. The place was said to get its name from the fish hukai.
ENGYON (Ancient city) SICILY
Some scholars have identified this city with modern Troina, others with Gangi or Nicosia. The most likely hypothesis seems to be the identification with Gangi, where traces of walls and buildings are preserved. (The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites)
ALESSA (Ancient city) SICILY
A city on the N coast of Sicily between Kalakta and Kephaloidion (district
of S. Maria, Commune of Tusa, Province of Messina). It is located on a large hill
overlooking the sea to the N and the valleys of the rivers Halaisos (modern Tusa)
and Opikanos (modern Cicera) to the W and E respectively. It was founded in 403
B.C. by Archonides of Herbita and peopled with Sikels and Greeks who had fled
to the site during the wars waged by Dionysios I (Diod. 14.16). Around the middle
of the 4th c. the city minted its own coinage in the name of a federation in which
it occupied a position of prominence (Head, HN 125). At the beginning of the first
Punic war it was the first Sicilian town to side with Rome (Diod. 23.4); it was
therefore made libera et immunis and was one of the main cities of the island
until the 1st c. B.C. (Cic. Verr. 3.6.13). Having achieved the status of municipium
in the Augustan period, it enjoyed considerable prosperity through the 2d and
3d c. A.D. During the Byzantine period it declined and was abandoned after the
Arab invasion.
Excavation tests have shown that the urban plan is largely preserved,
and systematic excavation was begun in 1970. The circuit wall (Hellenistic in
date) built in isodomic masonry with curtains between piers, is among the most
complete in Sicily. The E and N sides (which include an expansion downhill and
an imposing terracing with buttresses uphill) are the best preserved; near the
S gates, at regular intervals, are set square towers, which at times reach a height
of ca. 2 m. The main urban center lies on the E plateau and shows a street system
based on quasi-orthogonal principles: onto a cardo ca. 6 m wide, open decumani,
all well paved with small stone blocks, which create insulae. An insula near the
agora has yielded numerous Hellenistic architectural elements from a peristyle
house and Roman mosaics from another. On the highest part of the hill have been
found the substructures of two temples, one of which is almost certainly that
of Apollo. The main monument is the agora. The square is paved with bricks and
contains bases for monuments and the podium for speakers, in opus reticulatum.
On its W and N sides it is bordered by an L-shaped portico with double nave and
columns of stone and terracotta, which on epigraphic evidence has been identified
as the basilica. Against the (rear) wall of the portico (5 m high) are small shrines
containing altars and an abundance of marble floors and moldings, honorary inscriptions,
and pieces of sculpture. The first plan of the agora, which was modified during
Imperial times, goes back to the Hellenistic period; it was abandoned presumably
after the Constantinian age. In the late Byzantine period the agora, already covered
over, became the site of a poor cemetery.
G. Scibona, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
ENGYON (Ancient city) SICILY
A Sikel city mentioned by Diodoros (4.79-80 and 16.72), Plutarch (Marc.
20), Cicero (Verr. 3.43), and Pliny (HN 3.91). From Diodoros we learn that it
was 100 stades from Agyrion. It was colonized by Rhodio-Cretans, who brought with
them the cult of the Great Mother. Some scholars have identified this city with
modern Troina, others with Gangi or Nicosia. The most likely hypothesis seems
to be the identification with Gangi, where traces of walls and buildings are preserved.
The identification with Troina is unlikely because this modern town is quite far
from the borders reached by Rhodio-Cretan penetration in this direction, and,
moreover, the archaeological finds there are no earlier than the 5th c. B.C.
A. Curcio, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
KRASTOS (Ancient city) SICILY
Fortifications on the mountain overlooking the village of Castronovo.
The Arab name, which dates from mediaeval times, means castle or fortified area.
The fortifications have been partly explored. They date from the end of the 6th
or the beginning of the 5th c. B.C. Some archaeological evidence connected with
the Greek world has been found, while no documentation remains of a possible settlement
by Sikeloi or Sikani.
Since the site commanded the large communication route between Akragas
and Himera, this fortified center could well have been an Akragan outpost on the
road to Himera. On the basis of a papyrus (Oxyrh. Pap. 4.665, 11. 1-7), which
recounts the raids of Syracusan mercenaries in central Sicily during the second
quarter of the 5th c. B.C., this fortified site could well be identified with
the city of Krastos.
From the same area come various small bronzes in the shape of knucklebones,
some surmounted by snakes, birds, or bulls. These bronzes have generally been
considered comparable to many others found on the fringes of the territory belonging
to the Greek colonies in Sicily, but a recent theory suggests that they represent
the pre-coinage stage of the Sikel-Sikan culture. No evidence of life after the
end of the 4th c. B.C. remains at the site.
D. Adamesteanu, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
PANORMOS (Ancient city) SICILY
The ancient town is under the well-known city on the NW coast of Sicily.
Together with Soloeis and Motya, it belonged to that group of W Sicilian cities
to which, according to Thucydides (6.2), the Phoenicians retreated when the Greeks
arrived in Sicily, especially in E Sicily where the Phoenicians themselves had
settled. Greek imports found in the necropolis, especially proto-Corinthian vases,
seem to confirm the foundation date mentioned by Thucydides, that is, ca. mid
7th c. B.C. The name of the city was presumably given to it by the Greeks, who
must have been on excellent terms, at least at the commercial level, with the
local inhabitants, as attested by the considerable Greek material found within
the necropolis.
Besides Thucydides' account, no other information is available until
the first Punic war; it is likely however that the city was involved in earlier
Graeco-Punic relationships on account of its strategic position and harbor. The
Phoenicians always defended Panormos not only during the Punic wars fought by
Dionysios of Syracuse but also, more than a century later, when Pyrrhos made one
last attempt to unify Sicily under Greek political domination. On that occasion
(276 B.C.), Pyrrhos conquered the city but held it for only a short time. The
Romans occupied it in 254 B.C. but in 250 B.C., Asdrubal tried to recapture it
on behalf of the Carthaginians; he was defeated by the Consul Metellus near the
river Oreto. Again in 247 B.C. the Carthaginian general Hamilcar Barca occupied
the plateau of Mount Eircte near Panormos, which is almost certainly to be identified
with Monte Pellegrino, while the Romans held the city at the foot of the mountain.
After three years, Hamilcar abandoned his position and the city passed into Roman
hands.
The habitation center was delimited by the sea to the N, Piazza Indipendenza
to the S, and the two streams Papireto and Kemonia to the W and E respectively.
The entire area was divided into palaeapolis to the S and neapolis to the N, and
was surrounded by walls of which a few stretches remain, though heavily repaired
in later periods.
The necropolis of Palermo occupies a considerable area defined by
Piazza Indipendenza to the N, Via Cuba and Via Pindemonte to the S, Corso Pisani
to the E, and Via Danisinni to the W. Several hundred graves have been found,
both inhumation and cremation burials in rock-cut chambers or pits. Inhumation
was practiced in limestone sarcophagi, cremation in amphoras and pots of various
shapes and sizes. From the extent of the cemetery it is estimated that Panormos,
after the Punic period, had a population of ca. 30,000, deserving Polybios' description
of it (1.38) as the most important city of the Carthaginian dominions. The finds
from the necropolis consist largely of Greek vases, both imports and local imitations,
of various shapes and periods; there are also objects of silver, bronze, bone,
glass, and a few coins and limestone cippi. Panormos had its own mint.
The Archaeological Museum in Palermo is one of the most important
in Italy, containing all the archaeological material found in Selinus, Soloeis,
Panormos, and many other Sicilian cities, as well as objects from various private
collections.
V. Tusa, ed.
This text is from: The Princeton encyclopedia of classical sites,
Princeton University Press 1976. Cited Nov 2002 from
Perseus Project URL below, which contains bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
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