Listed 53 sub titles with search on: Archaeological sites for wider area of: "ITALY Country EUROPE" .
POSSIDONIA (Ancient city) CAMPANIA
MAGNA GRAECIA (Ancient Hellenic lands) EUROPE
POSSIDONIA (Ancient city) CAMPANIA
SYRACUSSES (Ancient city) SICILY
The project is under the auspices of the Magna Graecia Department of the Deutsches Archaologisches Institut Rome Section.
AKRAGAS (Ancient city) SICILY
Site: Akragas
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple; on the ridge marking the southern extent of the
city, east of the Temple of Herakles.
Date: ca. 430 B.C.
Period: Classical
Plan:
6 x 13; peripteral; pronaos and opisthodomos each distyle in antis; stairwells
on either side of the entrance to the cella leading to attic space.
History:
The temple was converted into a Christian church in the sixth century A.D.,
at which time the spaces between the columns were walled, the division between
the cella and the opisthodomos was destroyed, and arches were cut into the cella
walls. The blocks between the columns were removed in the 18th century. Due to
its conversion, this temple is one of the best preserved Doric temples in existence.
Its attribution to Concord is dubious.
Other Notes:
Double contraction on all four sides; subtle shifting to correct metope problem;
openings above cella porches to relieve lintels; curvature of stylobate; entasis
and slant of columns; uncarved metopes.
Carol A. Stein, ed.
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Site: Akragas
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple; in the southwestern corner of the city, east of
the "Temple of the Dioskouroi."
Date: Unknown Period
Plan:
Fragmentary remains of a peristyle and cella, crepidoma, and shafts of two
columns.
History:
Dated to 5th century B.C., but interior and foundations of an earlier temple are
contained in antis of the 6th century B.C.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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Site: Akragas
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple; on the ridge marking the southern extent of the
city, east of the Temple of Concord.
Date: ca. 460 B.C. - 440 B.C.
Period: Classical
Plan:
6 x 13; peripteral; pronaos and opisthodomos each distyle in antis. No angle
contraction
History:
Constructed in the prosperous period following the Battle of Himera (480 B.C.),
the Temple of Hera exhibits a Classic Doric plan. The ramp visible today on the
east end of the building is a Roman addition. Traces of burning on the surviving
superstructure may be the result of the Carthaginian sack of the city in 406 B.C.
Its attribution to Hera is probably erroneous.
Carol A. Stein, ed.
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Site: Akragas
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple; on the ridge marking the southern extent of the
city, just east of the Temple of Zeus Olympios.
Date: ca. 510 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
6 x 15; peripteral; pronaos and opisthodomos each distyle in antis; stairwells
on either side of the entrance to the cella leading to attic space. Angle contraction
on the fronts but not on the sides of the temple.
History:
The earliest of the large temples at Akragas, construction on this temple was
begun in the last decades of the sixth century (shortly before the nearby Temple
of Zeus Olympios). The temple capitals exhibit a stiff-profiled echinus, appearing
here for the first time in the west. Its attribution is uncertain, based solely
on a comment by Cicero.
Other Notes:
In 1924, eight columns on the south side were re-erected.
Carol A. Stein, ed.
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Site: Akragas
Type: Temple
Summary: Doric temple, its superstructure reconstructed in the 19th
c. from various fragments.
Date: Unknown
Plan:
Only the foundations remain, and, at the northwest corner, a group of four
columns with entablature was incorrectly reconstructed.
History:
The 1836 reconstruction of the group of columns incorporated architectural
elements of various periods and various buildings from this site.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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Site: Akragas
Type: Temple
Summary: Monumental temple, built of ashlar blocks; the largest
temple built in the Greek world.
Date: Unknown
Plan:
Over the foundations and the five-stepped crepidoma, in place of the traditional
colonnade there extended a solid wall, strengthened at regular intervals by Doric
half columns on the exterior and pilasters on the interior.
History:
Built after the victory of Himera 480 B.C., this temple was part of a grandiose
building program undertaken at Akragas. It was unfinished at the time of the Carthaginian
destruction in 406 B.C.
Other Notes:
Between the half columns, at mid height up against the solid wall, stood colossal
statues of Telamons, 7.65 m high, with arms bent at head level as if supporting
an architrave. The facades were decorated with sculptural representations of the
Gigantomachy and the Fall of Troy.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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GELA (Ancient city) SICILY
Site: Gela
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple; on the acropolis of the city
Date: ca. 480 B.C.
Period: Classical
Plan:
Some blocks for the underpinning of the cella and one of the columns of the opisthodomos
remain. Also, the foundations of an earlier, archaic temple are visible.
Carol A. Stein, ed.
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HERAION (Ancient sanctuary) CAMPANIA
Site: Foce del Sele
Type: Temple
Summary: Octastyle temple in an archaic santuary devoted to Argive
Hera.
Date: Unknown
Plan:
An octastyle temple with 17 columns on the long sides. The stereobyte is presevered
to its original height in some places. Following Ionic usage, the axes of the
cella walls are alligned with those of the corresponding columns of the peristasis.
A pronoas, noas, and adyton compose the cella, and the lateral walls had columns
instead of antae. The pteroma widens greatly on the east side, equaling the dimensions
of the three interaxials.
History:
The temple was erected towards the end of the 6th century B.C. An earthquake,
perhaps in 63 A.D., probably destroyed the temple. The eruption of Vesuvius in
79 A.D. buried the Heraion complex and by the 4th century A.D. all traces of activity
have disppeared.
Other Notes:
Unstable terrain dictated the placement of four courses under the peristasis and
two under the cella.The columns are sandstone conglomerate, all with eighteen
flutes, to which correspond two groups of capitals, diverse in profile. A multiple
molding crowned the architrave and the moldings of the external face bear plastic
decoration composed of Lesbian leaves, egg and dart, and bead and reel. Multiple
molding bearing, from top to bottom, a Lesbian leaf, an Ionic leaf, and a small
cyma reversa formed the normal Doric gesion above the frieze. The temple was entered
by means of a ramp abutting the crepidoma on the east front and the altar is situated
34.1 m from this front.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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Site: Foce del Sele
Type: Treasury
Summary: Treasury building attributed to the Sybarites.
Date: 570 B.C. - 550 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
The remains of the naos are the end wall to the west and the long walls to a maximum
height of four courses. There is no trace of a pronaos or a wall between pronaos
and naos. Reconstruction remains largely hypothetical.
History:
The erection of the treasury has been attributed to the Sybarites, and its incompleteness
to the destruction of their city.
Other Notes:
Of thirty-eight metopes belonging to the treasury, three are illegible.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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ITALY (Ancient country) EUROPE
Perseus Building Catalog includes monuments in Greece,
Italy and Turkey.
They are characterized as sanctuaries, houses, temples etc. and there
is information about their exact geographical location and the historical periods
when they were of special interest.
What is more, apart from this information there are also pictures,
links, place descriptions and relevant bibliography.
Editor's note:
The following Web pages of our Site host texts from Perseus
Building Catalog, linked with the Perseus
Project home page:
GREECE:
Aegosthena, Amphiareion,
Aphaia, Athens,
Brauron, Corinth,
Delos, Delphi,
Eleusis, Eretria,
Heraion (at Samos island),
Kerkyra, Sanctuary
of Asclepius, Malia, Mycenae,
Oenoe, Olympia,
Olynthus, Perachora,
Piraeus, Sounion,
Thermon, Vassae
ITALY:
Acragas, Gela,
Heraion, Metapontion,
Possidonia, (Paestum), Selinous,
Syracuse
TURKEY:
Assos, Didyma,
Halicarnassos, Miletos,
Priene, Smyrna
METAPONTO (Town) ITALY
Site: Metapontum
Type: Ekklesiasterion and theater
Summary: A monumental building complex located in the north-east
of the agora, originally circular in groundplan and probably an important public
meeting place; later, the plan was transformed into a theater.
Date: ca. 625 B.C. - 300 B.C.
Period: Archaic - Hellenistic
Plan:
Before the construction of the ekklesiasterion, a wooden tribunal, oriented to
the west and of uncertain plan, existed on the site. In the first phase of the
ekklesiasterion (termed "Phase Ia by the excavators), the ground was banked up
to create sloping seats, although the overall groundplan remains unclear. In its
second phase (Phase II), a central rectangular area was marked out, approached
on its short sides by two symmetrically-disposed entrances or dromoi. On either
side of the rectangular area, the banked-up earth probably supported wooden seats.
The entire structure was surrounded by a retaining wall, creating a structure
circular in groundplan. In its third phase (Phase III), the ekklesiasterion was
given simple rows of stone seats on either side of the central rectangular area.
The rows of seats were divided into segments by six flights of steps, radiating
out from the central area. Interestingly, the segments of seats form an ellipse
(as the central area is rectangular, not square), yet the exterior retaining wall
was circular in plan. After the building had been abandoned for some time, a theater
was built on the same location (Phase IV); the theater had a small semi-circular
orchestra, six wedges or cunei of seats in the lower level, and five in the upper.
The wedges of seats were neither equal in size, nor symmetrically disposed around
an imaginary center line. In front of the orchestra was a rectangular stage building.
The exterior wall of the cavea was not semi-circular in plan, but formed a series
of linear segments which were articulated with engaged Doric pilasters in the
upper level.
History:
A layer of burnt wood dating to the seventh century B.C. indicates that a structure
of some pretensions stood here at that time; perhaps a tribunal or "ikria." In
the first half of the sixth century B.C., the ground level at the site was banked
up to support seating. Large river boulders are also preserved from this building
phase, which is termed Phase Ia by the excavators. In the mid-sixth century B.C.,
the building first assumed monumental architectonic form. A rectangular central
area was laid out, surrounded by artificially banked up earth to support rows
of seating. The entire structure was enclosed by a ca. 2 m. tall retaining wall.
Two entrances or passageways led in to the central rectangular area. Between ca.
500-475 B.C., the ekklesiasterion underwent restorations and alterations (Phase
III): the retaining wall was heightened by approximately 3 m., and the entrance
passages were widened. The angle of the banked-up rows of seats was raised, and
the central rectangular space was given a border of two stone steps. By the beginning
of the fourth century B.C., the building appears to have fallen into disuse, and
the stone seats were removed. In ca. 325-300 B.C., the structure was completely
transformed into a theater. The technique of banking up the seats over a fill
of earth, supported by an exterior retaining wall, was maintained, but the circular
plan and rectangular central space of the ekklesiasterion was rejected in favor
of a theater building. The theater building itself does not appear ever to have
been completed. By the first quarter of the third century B.C., the exterior wall
had collapsed towards the middle; the structure was repaired in makeshift fashion,
with the reuse of many building blocks. Finally, the theater was transformed into
a fortress, with all of its entrances closed off.
Other Notes:
The ekklesiasterion at Metapontum is a monument unparalleled in the Greek world
at the time of its construction. The free-standing circular structure which dominated
the agora had an estimated seating capacity of ca. 7500-8000 people; this number
is inconsistent with the number of citizens of Metapontum and the surrounding
chora in the sixth century B.C., and raises the question of whether it actually
was an ekklesiasterion, or whether it fulfilled other functions. The excavators
suggest that perhaps it was also the location of gymnastic, agonistic, or musical
events. The fact that the theater was built on exactly the same site in the fourth
century B.C. suggests that the earlier structure may also have been used for entertainment.
Furthermore, the discovery of a stele, carved with the archaic inscription DIOSAGORA
and located in a small temenos near the ekklesiasterion perhaps indicates some
cultic associations with the building. The form of the theater, with cavea, semi-circular
orchestra, and free-standing stage building appears at Metapontum at a surprisingly
early date. The addition of exterior architectural features such as the Doric
pilasters hint at the interior changes in level in a manner not to be seen until
such Hellenistic structures as the Bouleuterion at Miletus and the Bouleuterion
at Priene .
Sarah Cormack, ed.
This text is cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains 6 image(s), bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
Site: Metapontum
Type: Temple
Summary: Extramural sanctuary, located ca. 3 km. outside the site,
on the right bank of the Bradano River.
Date: ca. 520 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
In plan, the temple is peripteral with 6 x 12 columns surrounding a cella building
containing pronaos, naos and adyton, with no propteron. The plan is viewed as
representing a reaction against the overly long proportions of the Temple of Apollo
at Metapontum . A notable feature of the plan is the extremely wide intercolumniation,
which is nearly equal at flanks and sides.
History:
The temple was built in one major building phase, in ca. 520-510 B.C. As is the
case with other temples at the site, the roof of the temple was restored at a
later date; terracotta architectural fragments dating to the mid-fifth century
B.C. were found.
Other Notes:
The temple was dedicated to Hera, as indicated by the votive deposits, but has
long been referred to in the scholarship as Tavole Palatine, or Knights' Tables.
That the area was a religious sanctuary before the construction of the temple
itself in the late sixth century B.C. is suggested by the discovery of a quantity
of ceramics and votive objects dating to the mid-seventh century B.C. The altar,
located ca. 25 m. east of the temple and measuring ca. 4.00 m. x 3.00 m. is viewed
by some as earlier than the temple itself, due to its modest scale and relative
distance from the temple. If, in fact, the altar predates the temple, this may
suggest that an older temple than the one preserved once stood on the site. Furthermore,
the temple was probably surrounded by a number of smaller religious structures,
or oikoi; a number of terracotta antefixes decorated with Gorgoneia were discovered;
their scale is too small to belong to the temple itself.
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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Site: Metapontum
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple, probably dedicated to Hera, in the main religious
sanctuary of the city; adjacent to the Temple of Apollo.
Date: ca. 570 B.C. - 530 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
Two phases of Temple B have been identified. In the first phase (Temple BI), the
temple was designed to be peristyle, with a groundplan of 9 x 17 columns, a central
colonnade with an uncertain number of columns in the cella, and a pronaos. An
additional row of foundations between the east facade and the pronaos suggests
that another row of columns, perhaps five, was originally planned here. In this
early phase the temple appears to have had an adyton. In the second construction
phase of the temple (Temple BII), the temple maintained its orientation and overall
structure, but was extended by 3.30 m. towards the east, resulting in a wide east
pteron. The number of columns was altered (to 7 x 15?), and, significantly, the
peristyle was closed in through the erection of a wall which was articulated with
half-columns. This half-columnar wall extended to the east to align with the front
of the pronaos. The pronaos was deepened with the addition of an extra column
on the flanks, for a total of five at the facade and two at the flanks. The pronaos
was also tristyle in antis. Inside the cella, behind a row of four columns, was
an adyton.
History:
Ceramic evidence from the lowest foundation levels suggests that the earlier temple
was begun sometime in the first half of the sixth century B.C. This temple was
never completed. In ca. 530 B.C., work on the temple was renewed, and elements
which had belonged to or were intended for the first temple were reused in the
second temple (for example, monolithic columns which were used in the foundations
of the second temple at the south, north and west). The excavators propose that
construction of Temple BII was completed shortly after 530 B.C. Hundreds of fragments
of architectural terracottas datable to the fifth century B.C. indicate that repairs
to the roof were carried out at that time. The temple was destroyed in the late
fourth century B.C.
Other Notes:
The orientation of both phases of Temple B is the same as that of the second phase
of the neighboring Temple of Apollo , and the facades of both temples are aligned,
an important indication of the new planning imposed on the sanctuary in the mid-sixth
century B.C. Temple B thus conforms to the orientation of the city plan. Also
significant is the incorporation of half-columns in the peristyle of Temple B,
their first appearance in Greek architecture. The similarity between the first
phase of Temple B and the Basilica at Paestum should be underscored: both temples
had an uneven number of columns (9) at the facade, and an internal colonnade in
the cella. The fact that Temple B was dedicated to Hera is known from an inscribed
architectural terracotta of the fourth century B.C., although argoi lithoi, or
votive stones, with dedications to Apollo were also found in the votive deposits
of the temple.
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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Site: Metapontum
Type: Temple
Summary: Oldest temple in the Metapontum sanctuary, preserved only
in its foundations.
Date: ca. 600 B.C. - 475 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
The final groundplan of the temple is unclear; a rectangular structure, at least
9.30 m. in length, is preserved. In its second construction phase, the temple
was rebuilt and enlarged, and although little remains of the superstructure of
this temple also, it is reconstructed as distyle in antis, without a peristyle.
Mertens 1985, fig. 2. The temple in both of its phases deviates in orientation
from the overall city plan and from the other major temples in the sanctuary,
Temple A and Temple B.
History:
The earliest structure was presumably a small oikos, known as CI, dating to ca.
600 B.C. To this structure belongs the fragmentary terracotta frieze. In the late
sixth century or early fifth century B.C., this modest building was incorporated
into a larger temple, Temple CII. Architectural fragments from the roof indicate
a restoration in the early fourth century B.C.
Other Notes:
Fragments of a terracotta frieze deriving from the superstructure of Temple CI
provide important art historical information on the nature of archaic art in the
sanctuaries of Southern Italy. The frieze is decorated in low relief with a processional
scene, including veiled females in carriages drawn by donkeys (?) and led by a
youth, and walking veiled females who appear to bear gifts. The name of the divinity
to whom the Temple was dedicated is uncertain, although Adamesteanu proposed that
it may have been dedicated to Athena, on the basis of an archaic inscription referring
to Athena found at the south side of the temple Adamesteanu 1974, 34.
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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Site: Metapontum
Type: Temple
Summary: Ionic temple situated at the north-east border of the religious
sanctuary of the city.
Date: ca. 475 B.C.
Period: Early Classical
Plan:
Very little is preserved of the temple in situ: the SW corner and parts of the
southern and western foundations of the cella, and the lowest foundation block
of the NW corner. However, the excavators suggest the following plan on the basis
of a reconstruction of the dimensions of the foundations: the temple was peripteral,
and was extremely long and narrow with the unusual number of 8 x 20 columns. The
temple was pseudodipteral, with wide ptera. The cella building was very simple,
consisting of a naos and elongated pronaos, with no columns in the pronaos, no
antae, and neither opisthodomos nor adyton. The pronaos was not open for its entire
width, but was apparently entered through a door, lending a megaron-like aspect
to the cella building. There were no columns inside the cella. The cella building
was aligned with the third column along the flanks of the peristasis.
History:
Unlike the other major temples in the sanctuary at Metapontum, the Ionic temple
had only one building phase, with the foundations, peristyle and cella built in
smooth succession. The building was constructed towards the end of the first quarter
of the fifth century B.C. Fragments of terracotta acroteria appear later in date,
and indicate that restorations were carried out. Ceramic evidence indicates that
the temple was destroyed in the third century B.C.; shortly thereafter, most of
the stones were removed for reuse elsewhere, and the foundations were filled in
with debris, including some of the architectural elements of the superstructure.
Other Notes:
The temple presents a number of unusual features. The combination of an architrave,
molded frieze, dentils, geison and sima does not conform to the canonical Ionic
system of epistyle, dentils, geison and sima prevalent at this time in Asia Minor.
The elongation of the plan, and the pseudodipteral effect created by the narrow
cella, at first appear to presage developments in Ionic temple architecture of
the Hellenistic period, for example at the Temple of Apollo at Didyma . Features
such as wide ptera and unusual groundplans containing large numbers of columns,
however, are already familiar in archaic Doric temple architecture in South Italy
and Sicily, for example at the Basilica at Paestum . With respect to its groundplan,
the Ionic temple at Metapontum can be viewed as standing at the end of archaic
temple development in South Italy, especially through the inclusion of the long,
narrow cella. The appearance of the Ionic order, however, is striking and attests
to the native architect's desire for architectural experimentation, combined with
the love of vivid ornament characteristic of South Italian temple architecture.
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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Site: Metapontum
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple dedicated to Apollo, with two distinct building
phases recognized; located in the main intramural sanctuary of the city, west
of the agora.
Date: ca. 570 B.C. - 540 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
Two phases of the temple have been identified. The plan of the first, temple AI,
is unclear, as it is preserved only in places in the foundations, which were dismantled
and reused for the second temple on the same site. Temple AI did not conform to
the orthogonal street plan of the city, whereas Temple AII, its immediate successor,
altered its orientation slightly to conform to the city plan. Temple AII was a
large peripteral temple of unusual plan: it had a propteron or double row of columns
at its east facade, the second row of columns aligned with the third column along
the flanks. There was a pronaos, with antae but no columns in antis; there was
neither adyton nor opisthodomos. The cella was long and narrow, and the width
of the cella foundations suggests that there was an interior colonnade of seven
columns along each side of the cella, close to the cella wall. A recent reconstruction
of the groundplan of Temple AII proposes 8x17 columns for the exterior colonnade.
History:
The first temple, Temple AI, was begun in ca. 570-560 B.C. and probably dedicated
to Apollo. This temple was never completed; shortly after its inception it was
abandoned, and its foundations were reused for the second temple, whose construction
was begun around the middle of the fifth century B.C. The temple was destroyed
in the last quarter of the fourth century B.C., with the arrival of the Lucanians
into Magna Graecia.
Other Notes:
The presence of a propteron, and the long narrow cella, are reminiscent of archaic
Sicilian temple architecture, for example Temple C at Selinus and theTemple of
Apollo at Syracuse . The extremely wide intercolumniation of the facades, estimated
at ca. 2.62 m., makes a normal entablature (with a triglyph over each column and
intercolumniation) unlikely. Recent studies instead suggest that the temple had
14 triglyphs and 13 metopes at the facade, instead of 15 and 14. It is probable
that the triglyphs and metopes had the same dimensions at the flanks and facades,
resulting in a frieze which was relatively independent of the column placement.
According to the excavators, the columns probably had entasis; the capitals were
low and spreading in profile, with two necking rings. The dedication of the temple
to Apollo is suggested by the presence of inscribed blocks or "argoi lithoi,"
dedicated to Apollo Lykeios Nikaios; architectural terracottas also preserve the
name of the divinity in abbreviated form. It is likely that the earlier temple
on the site, Temple AI, was also dedicated to the same god. In front of the temple
at the east, but aligned with the earlier Temple AI, was the massive altar, which
may date to a few years earlier than Temple AII. It was crowned with a Doric entablature.
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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POSSIDONIA (Ancient city) CAMPANIA
Site: Poseidonia
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple, probably dedicated to Hera, located in the sacred
area in the southern zone of the city; oriented to the east.
Date: ca. 560 B.C. - 530 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
In plan, the temple is unusually broad: it has nine columns across the east and
west facades, with eighteen along the flanks. Three columns stood between the
antae in the porch. Aligned axially with the central columns of the facade and
the pronaos is a row of seven columns in the interior of the cella, dividing the
cella into two naves. These interior columns were of the same diameter and height
as those of the pteron. The pteron is wide, almost pseudo-dipteral, and the antae
of the cella building line up with the third column along the flanks. Behind the
cella is an adyton, and although the cross-wall is not preserved, the adyton appears
not to have been accessible from the cella.
History:
Based on the plan, whose eccentricities suggest an early date, the plan of the
temple is generally thought to date to ca. 560 B.C. Its architectural terracottas,
however, appear slightly later in date, perhaps dating to ca. 520 B.C. Some of
the architectural terracottas date to the fourth century B.C., indicating that
repairs were undertaken at this time.
Other Notes:
The temple is typical of archaic western Greek temple architecture in its experimentation
in plan and details. For example, the nine columns at the west facade of the temple
have capitals which are decorated at their necks with different carved bands,
including palmettes, rosettes, lotus flowers and tendrils, all of which were originally
painted. The capitals of the antae in the pronaos have roll-like projecting moldings
on their undersides, a feature paralleled only at the Heraion at Foce del Sele
, Sybaris and Argos; it appears to be a transplanted Peloponnesian feature. The
presence of the central colonnade in the cella has been variously explained either
as a device to help support the wide roof span, or as the result of religious
practices: if the temple was dedicated to two divinities (or to two aspects of
the same divinity), the cult statues would have been displayed on either side
of the central colonnade. The temple was originally termed the "basilica" by eighteenth-century
visitors, who assumed the building to be civic in function; now, however, it is
generally agreed to have been dedicated to Hera. Numerous terracotta votive figurines
representing Hera were found in the vicinity. Dedications representing the sacred
marriage of Hera to Zeus were also found, leading some scholars to propose that
the temple housed both of their cult statues. The limestone altar, with lateral
staircase, is preserved at the east; to the south is a bothros or sacrificial
pit.
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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Site: Poseidonia
Type: Temple
Summary: Late Archaic peripteral temple dedicated to Athena, located
on high ground in the northern sector of the city. Also known as the "Temple of
Ceres."
Date: ca. 500 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
The plan consists of an external colonnade of 6 x 13 columns on a three-stepped
krepis, anticipating the canonical Doric temple plan. Inside the colonnade, however,
the temple departs from this regularity: the naos is approached at the east end
by a deep pronaos with eight Ionic columns (four at the facade, two at the flanks,
and a further two engaged to the antae walls). There is neither opisthodomos nor
adyton. The cella building appears to be aligned with the second and fifth columns
of the exterior colonnade at the facade. The pteron or ambulatory at the east
facade of the temple is two intercolumniations deep, whereas it is only one intercolumniation
deep around the other three sides. The temple employs equal interaxial spacing
at the fac\ades and flanks, and this measurement is used as a unit of measurement
for the rest of the groundplan. The stylobate has been identified as a hekatompedon,
measuring 100 Doric feet. There is evidence that staircases led to an upper balcony
inside the cella, behind the pronaos.
History:
The temple dates to the late sixth century B.C. Work appears to have been completed
in one building phase. Undisturbed votive deposits found at the south of the temple
contain figurines of Athena in two aspects - as a nurturing goddess with child
(kourotrophos), and as an armed warrior (Promachos). The deposits continue into
the Roman period, indicating continuity of cult at the temple. In the 6th and
7th centuries A.D., the temple was transformed into a church, probably devoted
to the worship of the Virgin Mary. Tombs of this period were built in the southern
ambulatory.
Other Notes:
The temple contains a number of unusual and innovative features in its design.
The combination of materials in the frieze of the temple is an unusual feature.
The absence of a horizontal cornice, and the presence of carved coffers under
the eaves created by the extension of the raking cornice are also eccentric. For
the first time in Italy, Ionic columns are incorporated in a Doric temple. The
Ionic columns stood on bases with a circular disc surmounted by a torus molding.
Their capitals are of archaic design, with a convex cushion, and a large convex
eye in the center of the volute. An egg-and-dart molding appears below the cushion
of the capital. Additional Ionic features in the temple are the presence of Ionic
moldings, including an egg-and-dart, on the exterior of the building above the
frieze, and the emphasis on the east facade of the temple through the use of a
wider ambulatory than on the flanks. The east facade is further emphasized through
the elaboration of the pronaos with its Ionic columns. The capitals of the exterior
colonnade were decorated with carved anthemion designs, possibly reflecting the
influence of the Temple of Hera I nearby. The Doric columns also employ entasis,
although not as pronounced as the entasis of the columns of the Temple of Hera
I . The identification of the temple as belonging to Athena, not Ceres/Demeter
as proposed in the eighteenth century, is now secure based on the discovery of
over one hundred terracotta votive figurines depicting Athena, and a later pottery
sherd with the archaic Latin inscription [M]ENERV[AE].
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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Site: Poseidonia
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple dedicated to Hera, adjacent to the older Temple
of Hera I in the southern religious sanctuary of the site.
Date: ca. 460 B.C.
Period: Classical
Plan:
The temple is peristyle, with 6 x 14 columns, a distyle in antis pronaos, and
a distyle in antis opisthodomos. To the right of the cella door, a staircase led
to the roof; to the left was a small utility room. Inside the cella, a double
colonnade of seven columns divides the cella into a nave and two side aisles.
Above the lower colonnade, an upper colonnade of smaller columns helps support
the roof. Double angle contraction is employed in the temple: the corner intercolumniations
at the flanks and fronts are reduced, in order for the triglyphs in the frieze
above to be centered over the columns. This contraction is distributed over the
first two intercolumniations at the corners. Certain optical refinements are also
employed: the stylobate is curved upwards slightly towards the center, to avoid
an impression of sagging; the horizontal cornices are also slightly curved; and
the columns incline slightly inwards. These features suggest that the architect
was influenced by developments in mainland Greek architecture.
History:
The temple was constructed in ca. 460 B.C. There is no evidence of substantial
later repairs or restorations, with the exception of the addition of a semicircular
flight of steps at the east fac\ade in the Roman period. Although the cella walls
were removed to provide building material in the Byzantine period, the temple
today is extremely well-preserved, with all columns of the peristyle in situ,
and the superstructure preserved up to the horizontal and raking cornices.
Other Notes:
The temple contains some archaizing features, such as the low profile of the echinus
of the column capitals, the use of 24 flutes on the columns instead of the canonical
20, the presence of fourteen columns along the flanks instead of thirteen, and
the generally squat proportions of the columns and entablature. However, the optical
refinements, and the knowledge of the theory of angle contraction, compensate
for these archaizing features and lend a dynamic and harmonious aspect to the
temple. The temple is devoid of sculptural decoration: neither the metopes nor
the pediments were sculpted. Due to its large size, the temple was believed by
early travellers to have been dedicated to Poseidon, titular divinity of the site
of Poseidonia. The presence of numerous terracotta votive reliefs, however, indicate
that the temple was the second temple to be dedicated to Hera at Paestum, adjacent
to the Temple of Hera I , the so-called Basilica at the site. Unlike other temples
at the site, which combine Ionic and Doric architectural features, the Temple
of Hera II is purely Doric, perhaps the only concession to the Ionic order being
the absence of regulae and guttae above the architrave, and in their place a continuous
crowning molding.
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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Site: Poseidonia
Type: Shrine
Summary: Rectangular building with gabled roof, submerged below
ground level and originally covered with a tumulus; located between the Temple
of Athena and the later Roman forum.
Date: ca. 510 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
The building is rectangular in plan, with a gabled roof. It has neither doors
nor windows, and was originally concealed beneath a tumulus-like mound. Surrounding
the structure is a temenos wall built at a later date.
History:
The building was built towards the end of the sixth century B.C., and served as
the site of some cult activity, possibly for a mythical founder of the city, or
for a recently deceased important political leader. The objects found within the
structure provide a terminus post quem for the closing of the shrine of ca. 510-500
B.C. No activity within the shrine is attested after this date, although the temenos
wall which surrounds the structure was built later, perhaps in the late fourth
century B.C., and attests to the continued sanctity of the shrine at this later
date.
Other Notes:
The interpretation of the building is disputed. The objects found within it suggest
that cult activity of some type took place here: six bronze hydriae were found,
containing a molasses-like substance ("honey"). Two of the hydriae were decorated
with female heads at the base of the vertical handle, and are Laconian in origin.
One hydria has a lion as a vertical handle. Five iron spits laid on travertine
blocks were also found, with fragments of leather and textiles nearby. A black-figure
amphora found inside the room had been repaired in antiquity, perhaps indicating
that its scene of apotheosis had particular significance for the function of the
building. There have been a number of theories put forth for the interpretation
of the building: (1) a place of worship for a chthonic deity, perhaps Hera/Kore;
(2) A building dedicated to the nymphs, or as a site of ritual for young women,
based on the discovery nearby of a vase with the graffito "I am sacred to the
nymphs"; (3) a cenotaph for a mythical ktistes (founder) of Sybaris, erected by
the Troizenians (some of the founders of Sybaris) after they fled Sybaris and
founded Poseidonia (Paestum); (4) a heroon built within the city (and near the
agora, the political center) for a previously-living person of importance in Poseidonia,
in other words not a cenotaph for a mythical figure of the distant past, but a
shrine for a political leader.
Sarah Cormack, ed.
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SELINOUS (Ancient city) SICILY
Site: Selinus
Type: Temple
Summary: Hexastyle peripteral temple on the highest point of the
acropolis built during the first half of the 6th century B.C.
Date: ca. 600 B.C. - 550 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
Hexastyle peripteral temple with seventeen columns on the sides. The cella building
comprised an adyton, a long and narrow cella, and a pronaos.
History: Erected in the 6th century B.C. and probably dedicated to Apollo,
the temple is thought to have fallen during an earthquake in the 5th century A.D.,
burying a Byzantine settlement, although the city had been sacked in 409 B.C.
by the Carthaginians. Fourteen columns of the north colonnade were re-erected
beginning in 1925, and the earthquake of 1968 disrupted this reconstruction. Since
then, scaffolding has covered it.
Other Notes:
The triglyph frieze carried carved metopes and was surmounted by a cornice revetted
with polychrome terracotta slabs. Two gorgoneia, also of painted terracotta, decorated
both pediments of the temple. On the temple roof, the ridge pole was covered by
the kalypteres also of polychrome terracotta. The columns are quite large (6 x
17), monolithic, and nearly 2 m in diameter at the base, except for the thicker
corner columns.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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Site: Selinus
Type: Temple
Summary: The southernmost of the east group of temples at Selinus,
this is a Doric temple probably dedicated to Hera.
Date: ca. 490 B.C. - 470 B.C.
Period: Early Classical
Plan:
This is hexastyle peripteral with 15 columns to the side, probably set within
a temenos, as suggested by a recently discovered wall. Its plan comprises pronaos,
cella, adyton, and opisthodomos in antis.
History:
Four of the metopes were discovered in 1831. Toppled by an earthquake, its colonnades
were recontructed in 1958.
Other Notes:
In the adyton stands the base for the cult statue of the patron deity, probably
Hera. The pronaos frieze carried sculptural metopes, four of which are in the
Palermo Museum.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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Site: Selinus
Type: Temple
Summary: The earliest of the three temples in the east group, east
of the city, situated between Temple E and Temple G.
Date: ca. 550 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
This was a hexastyle temple with 14 columns on the side with a pronaos, calla,
adyton, but no opisthodomos.
History:
At a certain time in the city's history, the Selinuntines built three temples
on the hill to the east of the city and acropolis, beyond the river Cottone. The
middle of the 6th century B.C. marked the start of this construction, since this
is the date attributed to the oldest of the three, Temple F.
Other Notes:
This temple was most likely dedicated to Athena or Dionysios.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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Site: Selinus
Type: Temple
Summary: One of the largest temples of antiquity, Temple G was left
unfinished at the time of the city's destruction in 409 B.C.
Date: ca. 500 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
This temple was hypaethral since the central nave was left unroofed. The vast
cella, preceded by a pronaos of four columns, had three doors corresponding to
the three inner naves formed by two rows of ten monolithic columns in two tiers.
History:
The variations in style and the fact that many columns are unfluted indicate that
the temple was under construction for a long period of time and was not complete
at the time of the city's destruction in 409 B.C.
Other Notes:
The columns are over 16 m high with a base diameter of 3.4 m and they weigh approximately
100 tons each. One column remains standing and the fallen capitals at the site
give an impression of the colossal scale of the unfinished building. The size
and scope of the temple, as well as the length of time devoted to its construction,
lend it many peculiarities and variations of style not found in other Doric temples.
Its columnar arrangement (8 x 17) is matched only by the Parthenon. This temple
was probably dedicated to Apollo or Zeus.
Lisa M. Cerrato, ed.
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SYRACUSSES (Ancient city) SICILY
Site: Syracuse
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple; in the northern portion of the island of Ortygia.
Date: ca. 565 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
6 x 17; double row of columns in front of cella; pronaos-distyle in antis; no
interior columns(?); adyton; four stepped crepidoma; small staircase on the east
end.
History:
The Temple of Apollo is the earliest example of monumental stone architecture
in Sicily. As identified by inscription, the temple was dedicated by Cleo[sthen]es,
presumably a tyrant of Syracuse. The temple's early date is attested to by its
massive proportions, narrowly spaced columns, and spreading column capitals. Possible
influence from eastern Ionic temples may be seen in the wider central intercolumniation
and the lack of anta projections, typical to the Doric style. Other variations
from the mainland Doric style include the lack of entasis, a reduced number of
flutes on the columns (16), and a lack of correlation in the spacing of the triglyphs
with the columns below. On the northeast angle column, the fluting was not carried
down to the stylobate, perhaps a sign of incompletion.
Carol A. Stein, ed.
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Site: Syracuse
Type: Altar
Summary: Altar; to the south of the theater.
Date: 269 B.C. - 215 B.C.
Period: Hellenistic
History:
The altar of Zeus Eleutherios (the Liberator) was constructed by Hieron II, tyrant
of Syracuse, as part of his building program in this area; it is approximately
contemporaneous with the nearby theater and nymphaeum. Diodorus states that 450
oxen were able to be sacrificed simultaneously atop the altar during the annual
feast of Zeus Eleutherios. Despite its enormous length (600 Doric feet; ca. 196
m), the altar was quite narrow and it stood ca. 11 m high. Narrow stairways were
located at each end of the front, flanked by telamones.
Carol A. Stein, ed.
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Site: Syracuse
Type: Temple
Summary: Doric temple, its remains now incorporated in a modern
cathedral
Date: ca. 470 B.C.
Period: Classical
Plan:
6 x 14; no interior columns; pronaos and opisthodomos each distyle in antis Double
angle contraction
Carol A. Stein, ed.
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Site: Syracuse
Type: Temple
Summary: Temple; across the Great Harbor, outside of the city.
Date: ca. 555 B.C.
Period: Archaic
Plan:
6 x 17; double colonnade in front of cella; pronaos - distyle in antis; no interior
columns; adyton.
History:
Similar in plan to the Temple of Apollo on Ortygia, the Temple of Zeus Olympios
has at least one improvement on its famous predecessor: the elimination of the
widened central intercolumniation along the short ends. On both of the two standing
column fragments, the fluting was not carried down to the stylobate (cp. Temple
of Apollo at Syracuse ), perhaps a sign of incompletion.
Carol A. Stein, ed.
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AKRAGAS (Ancient city) SICILY
Region: Sicily
Periods: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, Roman
Type: Fortified city
Summary: One of the most prosperous of the Greek cities of Sicily
and a rival to Syracuse in power.
Physical Description:
Akragas occupied the top of a ridge between the confluence
of the Hypsas and Akragas rivers, ca. 5 km inland from the Sicilian SW coast.
The slope of the ridge is abrupt in three dircetions, but more gentle to the S
side which leads down to the Hypsas valley. The acropolis occupied the highest
and narrowest part of the ridge at the NW. This was also the steepest area of
the ridge and the acropolis was not walled. Southeast of the acropolis the ridge
top broadens and slopes gently away to the S. This area of approximately 1 km
square was enclosed by a strong fortification wall of ca. 10 km in length and
contained the main part of the city. Recent excavations in the ancient residential
area have shown that the Hellenistic and Roman city was laid out on a rectangular
grid plan that seems to overlay an earlier grid system of the 5th century B.C.
The regular grid system of the earlier city streets may have been established
during the extensive building program carried out at the beginning of the 5th
century B.C. and coincide with the design of aqueducts and underground water transfer
and storage system built by the architect Phaiax. South of the main area of the
city, the city wall runs along the southern edge of the ridge top. Just inside
the city wall and also arranged along the southern edge of the ridge plateau are
the major sanctuaries and temples of the city. The temples of Hera, Concord, Herakles,
Olympian Zeus, and Hephaistos, as well as the sanctuary of Demeter and the Chthonic
Deities and other religious shrines are arranged along the southern boundary of
the city. The central city gate (Gate IV or the Golden Gate) opens near the center
of the southern wall on the temple ridge. From this gate an ancient road continued
down slope to the Hypsas valley, passing additional religious centers, including
the sanctuary of Asklepios, and continued on to the city's harbor at Emporium.
Description:
Akragas claimed the legendary Daedalus as its founder,
but in fact the city seems to have been established by a group of Rhodian and
Cretan colonists from the city of Gela at ca. 582 B.C. The settlers named the
city after the river along its eastern side. Under the tyrant Phalaris, ca. 570
B.C., the city began to expand its territory and by the end of the reign of Theron,
a century later, the city state had reached the height of its military and political
power. Theron had led the city to victory over the Carthaginians in 480 B.C. and
initiated a major building program in Akragas which included an extensive water
system designed by the architect Phaiax. The city continued to prosper until the
end of the 5th century B.C. In 406, after a siege of eight months, Akragas was
conquered and completely destroyed by Carthage. the city remained abandoned until
ca. 340 B.C. when Timoleon, the Corinthian established at Syracuse, defeated the
Carthaginians and restored independence to the Sicilian cities. Timoleon rebuilt
Akragas and repopulated it with displaced Akragasians and immigrants from Elea.
In 276 B.C. Akragas again fell under the control of Carthage, but after several
sieges of the city, Rome gained control in 210 B.C. The Romans enslaved the inhabitants
and repopulated the city which thereafter enjoyed peace and prosperity under Roman
rule. Commerce and industry advanced and the port at Emporium flourished. During
the early Christian period the city quickly declined and it was little more than
a village by the time of the Arab invasion in A.D. 827.
Donald R. Keller, ed.
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GELA (Ancient city) SICILY
Region: Sicily
Periods: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic
Type: Fortified city
Summary: City of a Greek colony with well preserved city walls.
Physical Description:
The site of Gela occupied the top of a low sandy ridge
running parallel and adjacent to the coast just W of the Gela river. The city's
acropolis was at the E end of the ridge and the public and private buildings extended
off to the W. In 338 B.C. the new city of Timoleon was built on a grid plan that
placed houses and public buildings on terraced terrain to the W and encroached
upon the older acropolis area to the E. The rebuilt city was enclosed by new fortification
walls (ca. 4 km in length) which encircled the entire ridge top. The fortification
walls at Gela were built in a standard 4th century B.C. manner. A stone wall of
ca. 3.5 m in height was capped by an additional 2 m high section of mud brick
walling. At Gela the drifting sands made it necessary to twice extend the height
of the mud brick upper section of walls until a total height of over 8 m was reached.
In the 3rd century B.C., when the city was abandoned, the sand drifts continued
to rise until sections of the wall were completely buried. In WW II, naval bombardment
exposed this rare example of ancient military architecture and the remains have
since been excavated and conserved.
Description:
Gela, named for the river that runs beside it, was founded
in 689 B.C. by colonists from Rhodes and Crete. Following a difficult struggle
with the native inhabitants, the Greeks began to expand their control into western
Sicily. By 582 B.C. the city was secure enough to establish a colony at Akragas
and to gain political control over much of the western and central portion of
the island. At the end of the 6th century the city had extended its control into
SE Sicily, and, under the rule of Hippocrates (498-491 B.C.) Gela had reached
the peak of its economical and political power. In 480 B.C., under the rule of
Gelon, the city defeated Carthage. Gelon, however, elected to move his seat of
power and many of the Geloans to Syracuse. During the rest of the 5th century
Gela declined in political importance, but it remained a prosperous cultural center.
In 405 B.C. Gela was defeated and the city razed by the Carthaginians. The city
was abandoned until the Corinthian Timoleon rebuilt and repopulated the site in
338 B.C. In 310 B.C. Gela was conquered by Syracuse and was reduced to a military
base occupying only the western part of the ridge top. At ca. 284 B.C. Phintias,
the tyrant of Akragas, destroyed Gela and removed its inhabitants to the new city
he had named after himself. Gela remained deserted until the medieval town of
Terranova was built on the site in the 13th century.
Exploration:
There were some excavations at Gela in 1900 and new excavations
were started in 1948 and continue to the present.
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HERAION (Ancient sanctuary) CAMPANIA
Region: Lucania
Periods: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic
Type: Sanctuary
Summary: Sanctuary dedicated to Argive Hera.
Physical Description:
Located at the mouth of the Sele river, ca. 10 km north
of Paestum, the Heraion was a small sanctuary with a temple of Hera, two monumental
altars, a treasury, and surrounding stoas.
Description:
Traditionally said to have been founded by Jason, the leader of the Argonauts,
the sanctuary was established by Greek colonists in the 7th century B.C. The Heraion
flourished in the Archaic period, but was less active in the 5th and 4th centuries
B.C. In the Hellenistic period the site again rose to prominence. During the Roman
period the Heraion declined in importance and, following earthquake damage and
the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, it fell into disuse. In the Christian period it
became a quarry for building stone. The location of the sanctuary was forgotten
until it was rediscovered in 1934.
Donald R. Keller, ed.
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ITALY (Ancient country) EUROPE
Perseus Site Catalog includes places of archaeological
interest in Greece, Italy
and Turkey.
They are characterized as towns, sanctuaries, etc. and there is information
about their exact geographical location and the historical periods when they were
of special interest.
What is more, apart from this information there are also pictures,
links, place descriptions, relevant bibliography and references to excavations
that have taken place there.
Editor's note:
The following Web pages of our Site host texts from Perseus
Site Catalog, linked with the Perseus
Project home page:
GREECE:
Acanthus, Acharnai,
Acrotiri, Aegina,
Aegosthena, Amphiareion,
Amphipolis, Aphaia,
Argissa, Argos,
Avdera, Athens,
Brauron, Calydon,
Cassope, Corinth,
Delos, Delphi,
Dimini, Dodona,
Dreros, Eleusis,
Epidauros, Eretria,
Halieis, Heraion
(at Samos island), Heraion
(at Corinthia), Heraion (at
Argos), Isthmia, Kameiros,
Karfi, Karystos,
Kerkyra, Lerna,
Malia, Mantinea,
Megalopolis, Messene,
Mycenae, Olympia,
Olynthos, Pella,
Piraeus, Prinias,
Pylos, Rhamnous,
Rodos, Samothrace,
Sesklo, Sounion,
Sparta, Tegea,
Thasos, Thermon,
Thorikos, Vergina
ITALY:
Acragas, Gela,
Heraion, Metapontion,
Possidonia (Paestum), Selinous,
Syracuse
TURKEY:
Assos, Didyma,
Ephessos, Evromos,
Halicarnassos, Heracleia
epi Latmo (Heracleia under Latmus), Iassos,
Lavranda (Labraunda), Miletus,
Panionion, Pergamos,
Priene, Smyrna,
Troy
METAPONTO (Town) ITALY
Region: Lucania
Periods: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic
Type: Fortified city
Summary: A prosperous Greek colony.
Physical Description:
Located on the gulf of Taranto between the rivers Bradaneus
and Casuentus, the site was well-chosen for trade and agricultural potenital.
The city was built at the site of an existing local settlement and was laid out
on a rectangular grid system enclosed by a fortification wall of ca. 6 km in length.
Metapontum had a small artificial harbor linked to the city by a canal. Within
the city were an agora, theater, temples and a sanctuary of Apollo Lykeios. The
sanctuary of Hera was located outside the city walls, ca. 3 km to the NE. The
temple of Hera at the sanctuary, the so-called Tavole Palatine, is one of the
best preserved monuments of Magna Graecia. North of Metapontum the agricultural
land of the Greek inhabitants was divided by a rectangular grid system into a
complex of individual farmsteads.
Description:
Greek colonists, possibly from Pylos, founded the city,
originally called Metabum, in the 7th century B.C. Shortly thereafter the settlement
was destroyed by the Samnites and then reestablished by Greek colonists from Achaea.
Because of its good location for trade and the rich fertility of the surrounding
territory the city grew in prosperity. Metapontum came under Roman control during
the Pyrrhic War. In the 2nd Punic War the city allied itself with the Carthaginians
and soon afterwards appears to have been abandoned. The most famous citizen of
Metapontum was Pythagoras who came to teach here after being expelled from the
city of Croton, and remained until his death.
Donald R. Keller, ed.
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POSSIDONIA (Ancient city) CAMPANIA
Region: Lucania
Periods: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, Roman
Type: Fortified city
Summary: Also known as Paestum; a maritime city established by Greek
colonists near the Heraion at Foce del Sele.
Physical Description:
Paestum was established on the coast at the edge of the Sele
plain, ca. 10 km S of the Heraion at Foce del Sele. The site was well chosen for
its agricultural potential and the possibility for maritime trade. The city was
enclosed in ca. 5 km of fortification walls and laid out on a grid system. In
its design, the central zone of the city was reserved for religious and public
buildings. From a central agora, or forum, the major north-south street, the paved
Via Sacra, led N to the temenos of Athena, which also included the temple of Ceres.
The street continued on to the N city gate. The Via Sacra ran S from the agora
to the city's sanctuary of Hera, which included the major temples dedicated to
Poseidon and Hera, and a number of smaller temples, treasuries, and altars. The
paved street continued from the S religious precinct to the S city gate. In the
area of the agora were located additional religious buildings and the major public
buildings, including the bouleutron, curia, gymnasium, baths, and the ampitheater.
The residental and commercial quarters extended E and W of the central public
zone of the city.
Description:
Poseidonia was established and fortified by Greek colonists
from the city of Sybaris, farther S, in the 7th century B.C. At ca. 400 B.C. the
city was conquered by the Lucanians who renamed it Paiston or Paistos. In 273
B.C. Rome established a colony at the city and latinized the name to Paestum.
During the Roman period the prosperity of the city began to decline due to the
silting of the Sele river which turned the area swampy and caused it to become
infested with malaria. By the early Christian period the city was reduced to the
size of a small village and in the 9th century A.D. it was finally abandoned.
The location of the site was forgotten and not rediscovered until a road was constructed
through the swamp in the middle of the 18th century.
Donald R. Keller, ed.
This text is cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains 77 image(s), bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
SELINOUS (Ancient city) SICILY
Region: Sicily
Periods: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic
Type: Fortified city
Summary: Wealthy colony on the SW coast of Sicily
Physical Description:
The city was the westernmost colony in Sicily. The acropolis
occupies a low hill along the southern coast of the island, with harbors on either
side -- the western one formed by the mouth of the river Selinus (modern Modione)
and the eastern one by the river Calici (modern Cotone). Neither river is much
more than a marsh today. The city extended northwards onto the hill now known
as the Manuzza, and to the east onto ridge occupied by three great Doric temples,
and was surrounded by fertile agricultural land. A native Sican settlement had
occupied the site of the later Archaic cemetery to the NE, and coexisted with
the Greek settlement in its early years. Corinthian pottery of the mid-seventh
century as been found on the necropolis (which lay on either side of the river
Selinus, extending up to 5 km. from the town) and at the sanctuaries, and there
are some traces of temple building in the seventh century as well (Temples X and
Y on the acropolis). A Greek grid-planned town on the Manuzza hill to the north
of the acropolis is conspicuous in aerial photographs, and has recently been partly
excavated. A major sanctuary dedicated to the Chthonic deities Demeter, Zeus and
Hekate was situated on the west bank of the river Selinus (the Sanctuary of Demeter
Malophoros). On the acropolis were four large Doric temples, two of the sixth
century, two of the fifth, and a small shrine. None of these has been securely
attributed to specific deities, but are identified by letters (Temples A, C, D,
and O; Shrine B). Defensive walls girded the acropolis, most of whose standing
remains can be dated to the late sixth or early fifth centuries B.C. To the north
of the city lay a small Archaic temple and altar. On the plateau to the east of
the city, across the Calici river, were three more sixth-century Doric temples,
Temples E, F, and G (also known as R, S and T respectively). The material remains
are impressive, particularly the stone metopes and terracotta gorgoneia from Temple
C (now in the Palermo Museum) and the massive, unfinished Temple G, attributed
to Apollo and one of the largest Greek temples ever attempted. The city was destroyed
by Carthaginians in 409 BC (Diod. Sic. 13.54-62). Though the area of the acropolis
was resettled by survivors and by the Carthaginians, Selinus never regained prominence.
The city remained under Punic control until 250 B.C. when, after Carthage had
again razed the city, the site was essentially deserted. The acropolis was refortified
in the Byzantine period, and the sanctuary of the Chthonic divinities was also
reused then.
Description:
Thucydides asserts that Selinus was founded in 628/7 BC,
one hundred years after the foundation of her metropolis, Megara Hyblaea in western
Sicily (Thuc. 6.4.2). Pammilos of Megara (Nisaia) in Central Greece led the expedition
as oikist (founder), for the Hyblaeans had requested an oikist be sent from their
own metropolis. They were following a customary ritual which underlined the continuity
of the colony with the original community, even at one remove (cf. the case of
Epidamnos, Thuc. 1.24.2). Against Thucydides' conveniently round figure of 100
years after the foundation of Megara Hyblaea, the later authors Diodorus and Eusebius
give a discordant foundation date of 651/0 BC (Diod. Sic. 13.59.4). Their date
may be borne out by archaeological finds, but here one is always in danger of
relying upon circular evidence. As a rule, a defensible island, promontory or
escarpment was the most common site for a new colony, but Selinus had only a fairly
low fortified hill (although in antiquity the acropolis was probably more like
a peninsula since the harbors on either side extended much further inland than
they do today). Pammilos could have chosen a more defensible site with better
harbors and with equally fertile land to the east, so it is a puzzle why this
site was chosen Similar questions are asked of the site of Himera on the north
coast of Sicily, which was founded three years after Selinus according to Diodorus
(Diod. Sic. 13.62.56; cf. Diod. Sic. 13.54.1). Both western Sicilian cities may
have been convenient stops on the coasting route to and from Spain and north Africa,
and Himera to Etruria as well. Both could have been settled to facilitate trade
with Phoenician colonies (Selinus with Motya, Himera with Panormus [modern Palermo]
and Soloeis), or to block eastward Punic expansion. In any case Greek colonial
expedition were unwelcome further west. The Phoenicians and the native Elymi of
northeast Sicily repulsed Dorian colonists from Lilybaion, a peninsula overlooking
Motya (ca. 570 BC), and from Mt. Eryx, betwen Motya and Panormus (ca. 510 BC).
The former had some bearing on Selinus, for the would-be colonists briefly joined
the Elymi of Segesta against her (Diod. Sic. 5.9) and the latter had some bearing
on Minoa, a Selinuntine colony at the mouth of the Halycus River (modern Platani),
for the survivors of the attempted colony of Herakleia at Mt. Eryx captured and
refounded it as Herakleia Minoa (Hdt. 5.43-46). However, there is evidence of
mostly amicable relations between the colonists of Himera and Selinus and the
Punic colonists to their west. A metrical epitaph for a fallen Greek (Selinuntine?)
dated to the first half of the fifth century has been unearthed in Motya, which
had a sizable Greek element (Diod. Sic. 46.53.2). Further, Hamilcar of Carthage,
called in by the tyrants of Himera and Rhegion, counted upon the aid of Selinus
against Theron of Akragas and Gelon of Syracuse in the Battle of Himera (480 BC).
Selinus could also have been founded to open commercial contacts with the native
Elymi in the northeast corner of the island (at sites such as Segesta). In support
of this, Early Corinthian pottery has been found at the Elymian town of Segesta
and at a Selinuntine sanctuary to Herakles up the Hypsas river near Poggioreale
(close to Elymian Entella), and the pottery can be dated as early as any found
at Himera or Selinus. Fostering good relations with the neighboring peoples, Sicans,
Elymi, and Phoenicians, would have allowed the Selinuntines to become prosperous
through agriculture and commerce while occupying a not particularly strong site,
similar to the position of their metropolis (Megara and Hyblon, Hdt. 6.4.1). Pammilos
as oikist would have overseen the division of the land into kleroi (allotments)
of relatively equal size or value for each colonist. He would also have set aside
land for the gods in sacred precincts, where monumental stone temples would later
be built. Cult practice in these precincts probably reflects the continuity of
institutions from the original mother city to later colonies. Demeter and her
daughter Persephone (possibly worshipped in Selinus as Pasikrateia, "all-powerful",
Meiggs & Lewis, no. 38) held particular prominence in agriculturally rich Sicily,
the site of Persephone's abduction. Demeter's cult title of Malophoros is attested
only here and at Megara (Nisaia) (Paus. 1.44.3), and is confirmed by inscriptions
and several thousand terracotta statuettes of the goddess carrying a pomegranate.
Hers was one of the first sanctuaries established (quadrangular, 50 x 60 m.) and
here some of the earliest finds of pottery at Selinus have been unearthed. The
main structure within the precinct is her megaron with an altar in front. Also
within the precinct wall was a shrine to her consort, Zeus Meilichios, whom farmers
would invoke with chthonic Demeter at the time of sowing. Subterranean Zeus was
dreadful and beneficent -- he offered purification after blood-feud and ensured
the growth fo crops. His epithet ("Gentle One") may be a euphemism in the way
that the treacherous Black Sea was called the Euxine ("Kind to Travelers"), or
it may indicate his role in appeasing the dead. Inscribed stelai, sometimes with
two heads sculpted at the top, were dedicated to Meilichios -- perhaps remnants
of primal aniconic stone-worship (cf. Jeffery 1990, 255, 270-1, 277:31-2), or
perhaps the result of Punic influence. His cult seems to have been under the care
of an aristocratic Selinuntine genos, the kleulidai, in the same way that in Megara
his cult was under the care of an (unrelated) genos. There was also a temple of
Hekate (cf. Jeffery 1990, 271, 277.41) and an elaborate propylon to the whole
complex. The precinct seems to have served both Greeks (from the mainland as well
as colonists) and natives. The propylon was partially remodelled during the Punic/Hellenistic
period, and the megaron of Demeter was modified in the Byzantine period. The colossal
Temple X, on the acropolis south of Temple C, and the smaller Temple Y (from which
some decoration survives -- metopes and cornice decoration) were leveled to their
foundations by the sixth century, when Selinus undertook an impressive series
of temple-building projects, the first of which was Temple C (mid-sixth century;
see Selinus,Temple C ). It was built upon the highest point of the acropolis,
and now lies in ruins. This is one of the earliest examples of Archaic temple
building in the Doric style: hexastyle (six columns on the fronts), constructed
on a notably elongated plan, with a narrow cella and with large, tapered columns
(some monolithic, some drums). Carved metopes from the Doric frieze survive, as
well as two painted terracotta gorgoneia from each pediment (a Western Greek phenomenon,
with other examples found at Syracuse, Gela and one in stone at Corcyra). The
limestone of the friezes and columns was covered with plaster and painted as well.
The first altar of the temple lies to the southeast and the later altar is to
the east. Not much later are Temple D on the acropolis and Temple F (S) on the
eastern plateau (both second half of the 6th century BC). Both are about the same
width as temple C; both are hexastyle, and both have narrow cellas, but they are
not as elongated as Temple C. The sculptured metopes of Temple F have survived.
This temple also has enigmatic intercolumnar screen walls. The massive Temple
G (T), dedicated to Apollo, was begun not much later on the eastern plateau, the
first colossal temple in the West to vie with the great Ionic temples of Asia
Minor. It measures some 50.1 x 110.36 m. Like the Ionic temples, it is octastyle
(8 columns on the fronts). The work was begun on the east side in the late 6th
century, and moved slowly west, until finally the west side was nearing completion
in the fifth century BC; different parts of the temple thus show markedly different
styles. The interior was so vast that it was probably never intended to be roofed.
The ambitious project was abandoned some time before (or because of) the Carthaginian
attack of 409 BC, and column drums of matching proportions have been left half-carved
in the quarries 9 km to the northwest at Cusa/Campobello. While work on Temple
G was in progress, the Selinuntines began Temples A and O on the acropolis and
Temple E (R) on the eastern plateau (ca. 480 BC, after the defeat of Hamilcar
at Himera). The temples exhibit a more developed Doric style, with the spacing
between columns contracting as they reached the corners. The sculptured metopes
of Temple E were made of limestone covered with plaster, but with marble inserts
for heads, hands and feet of female figures ("acrolithic" sculpture). The ruins
of Temple F have been restored, while Temples A and O were joined together in
the medieval period and rebuilt as a fortified tower. Pammilos would have erected
at least a wooden palisade on the acropolis, and this was replaced by stone fortifications,
much of which survives. Most of the remains of the extensive circuit wall can
be dated to the late 6th/early 5th c. BC, with evidence of repairs made by Hermocrates
ca. 408 BC. The fortifications and gate complex at the northern end of the acropolis,
leading out to the Manuzza hill and residential quarter, are particularly impressive.
This text is cited Oct 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains 403 image(s), bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
SYRACUSSES (Ancient city) SICILY
Region: Sicily
Periods: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, Roman
Type: Fortified city and port
Summary: The richest Greek city of Sicily and a western rival of
Athens.
Physical Description:
The city of Syracuse is located at the SE corner of Sicily and included
the offshore island of Ortygia. Ortygia, which forms the N arm of the natural
harbor at Syracuse, was a naturally defensible site with a source of fresh water.
It was the position first occupied by the Greek colonists who fortified it, laid
out a linear grid pattern of streets, and constructed their earliest sanctuaries,
including temples of Athena and Apollo. The narrow island remained a citadel of
the city even after it was joined to the mainland at ca. 550 B.C. In addition
to the large deep harbor (Great Harbor) S of the island, the construction of moles
formed a small second harbor N of the island. These facilities made Syracuse one
of the principal ports of the western Mediterranian. On the mainland W of Ortygia,
and extending to the N, was the commercial and administrative center of Syracuse,
the district of Achradina. The agora, shops, and public buildings were in this
area adjoining the quays and dry docks of the harbors. West of Achradina was the
district of Neapolis, where the theater, ampitheater, and many of the major monuments
were located. Northwest of Achradina and Neapolis was the residential district
of Tyche. The slopping terrain of the Tyche district reached up to the plateau
of Epipolae, which was a largely undeveloped area of the city. This high ground
was, for stratigic reasons, included within the city's defensive walls which extended
far to the W, to the fortress of Euryalos. The well-designed fortress was constructed
as an independent strong point at the northwestern extreme of the city's defenses
where the only level approach to the Epipolae plateau is located. The latest city
walls of Syracuse extended for ca. 31 km and were built by Dionysios at the beginning
of the 4th century B.C. A major sanctuary of Olympian Zeus is also located at
Syracuse, ca. 3 km S of the city, on the banks of the Cyane river.
Description:
In 734 B.C. Corinthians, led by Archias, overcame a local Sicel settlement
on the island of Ortygia and established the colony of Syracuse. The island, forming
the N side of the Great Harbor and with its own source of fresh water, the spring
of Arethusa, remained the citadel of Syracuse. The city, however, soon extended
to the mainland, and in the mid 6th century B.C., Ortygia was connected to the
mainland by a causeway. In the course of the 5th century B.C. the wealth, cultural
development, and political power of Syracuse rivalled Athens itself. In 485 B.C.,
Gelon, the tyrant of Gela, who had gained control over most of Sicily, seized
Syracuse and made it his capital. In 480 B.C. Gelon led the Greeks in a victory
over the Carthaginians at Himera. Gelon's brother, who succeeded him, defeated
the Etruscians in a naval battle in 474 B.C. and ensured the dominance of Syracuse
over the entire southwestern Mediterranian basin. In 415-413 B.C. Syracuse was
victorious in a war with Athens. Between 410 and 397 B.C. Syracuse was again victorious
over the Carthaginians and renewed its claim to supremacy in the western Mediterranian.
In the middle of the 4th century B.C., however, Carthage again invaded Sicily
and threatened Syracuse. In 344 B.C., the Corinthian Timoleon was sent to Sicily
at the request of the Greek cities there in order to repel the Carthaginians.
Timoleon took possession of Syracuse and led the Sicilian Greeks to victory in
339 B.C. Timoleon rebuilt the Greek cities and established democratic governments
in each. Syracuse continued to better the Carthaginians in battle and in the 3rd
century B.C. became allied with Rome. Later the city attempted to reject the alliance
and at ca. 212 B.C., after a two year siege, the Romans conquered Syracuse. The
Roman plunder and looting of art from Syracuse is said to have created the first
appreciation of Classical Greek art in Rome. Syracuse declined under Roman rule
and was finally destroyed by the Saracens in A.D. 878.
Donald R. Keller, ed.
This text is cited Aug 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains 127 image(s), bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
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