Syracuse, Sicily
One wouldn't expect to see the best conserved Greek temples in Italy. One would think that they would be in Greece. But this is not the case. Today we visited the city of Siracusa on the island of Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean. For all time Sicilia has been important for all of the different cultures in the basin. Its strategic importance made it a prize for successive waves of invaders and colonizers. These different groups included Phoenicians, Greek, Romans, Normans, Arabs and Byzantines. The first settlers of the island were the Sicanians, Elymians and Sicilians. Greek colonization began in the 8th century BC, with the city of Naxos, followed by other important cities like Siracusa , Catania and Agrigento. Siracusa became a powerful city that was able to rival Athens. It was founded in 734 by Corinthians, who established their small settlement on the island of Ortigia, which we visited in the early afternoon. The highlight of this afternoon was a visit to the cathedral, built on top of a Greek temple to Athena in the 7th century. Luckily it still incorporates most of the original columns of the Greek temple.
In the morning we visited the Greek Theatre, one of the most grandiose monuments of its kind still in existence from classical antiquity. Next was the Paradise Quarry, a huge limestone pit, which collapsed after a strong earthquake. Here we could see (and hear!) Dionysius' Ear, an excavation in the limestone that amplifies even the slightest sound. It is said Caravaggio named it thus, because of its peculiar shape.
One wouldn't expect to see the best conserved Greek temples in Italy. One would think that they would be in Greece. But this is not the case. Today we visited the city of Siracusa on the island of Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean. For all time Sicilia has been important for all of the different cultures in the basin. Its strategic importance made it a prize for successive waves of invaders and colonizers. These different groups included Phoenicians, Greek, Romans, Normans, Arabs and Byzantines. The first settlers of the island were the Sicanians, Elymians and Sicilians. Greek colonization began in the 8th century BC, with the city of Naxos, followed by other important cities like Siracusa , Catania and Agrigento. Siracusa became a powerful city that was able to rival Athens. It was founded in 734 by Corinthians, who established their small settlement on the island of Ortigia, which we visited in the early afternoon. The highlight of this afternoon was a visit to the cathedral, built on top of a Greek temple to Athena in the 7th century. Luckily it still incorporates most of the original columns of the Greek temple.
In the morning we visited the Greek Theatre, one of the most grandiose monuments of its kind still in existence from classical antiquity. Next was the Paradise Quarry, a huge limestone pit, which collapsed after a strong earthquake. Here we could see (and hear!) Dionysius' Ear, an excavation in the limestone that amplifies even the slightest sound. It is said Caravaggio named it thus, because of its peculiar shape.
