Listed 7 sub titles with search on: Archaeological sites for destination: "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.
This text is cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains 22 image(s), bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
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.
This text is cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains 18 image(s), bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
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.
This text is cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains 48 image(s), bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
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.
This text is cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains 7 image(s), bibliography & interesting hyperlinks.
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.
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