Tag: archeologia
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Early Bronze Age Sicily
From the Museo Archeologico Paolo Orsi in Siracusa, this door slab with carved spiral, anthropomorphic motifs is from the early Bronze Age. It’s dated to be from sometime between the 22nd and 15th century B.C. and was collected from a tomb in Castelluccio, an archaeological area between Noto and Palazzolo Acreida in southeastern Sicily. Yes,…
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A Bust of Persephone
Clay busts of Kore/Persephone, such as this one pictured from the archaeological museum in Aidone (Enna Province), have been found throughout Sicily, proving the significance of the goddess and her story. In the 5th century to the 3rd century B.C., for example, women devotees prayed to Kore for healthful fertility and protection during various stages…
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Our May 2016 Tour: Tall, Massive, and Handsome
The Temple of Heracles (also known as the Temple of Hercules) of Agrigento’s Valley of the Temples possesses eight reconstructed, massive Doric-style columns. Built in the late 6th century BC, it is considered the first temple to have been built of the seven that we know of at the Valley of the Temples. Valley of…
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Our May 2016 Tour, Day 8: Polyphemus and Friends
Sicily is the setting for many of the adventures told in Homer’s Odyssey. And, indeed, some of the stupendous mosaic scenes at the Villa Romana del Casale at Piazza Armerina (Where we’ll be on the morning of Day 8 of our May 2016 Experience Sicily with Melissa Muller tour) illustrate some of the epic poem’s…
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Our May 2016 Tour, Day 7: If Walls Could Talk
If walls could talk, the Duomo of Siracusa would have 2500 years of human history to tell. We know this because its walls are supported by Doric-style columns from an ancient Temple of Athena that was build in the 5th century BC (pictured on the left). During the in the 7th century, when the Byzantines…
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This Little Piggy Went to the Thesmophoria
Terracotta statuettes of Demeter holding a piglet have been found at archaeological sites throughout the landscapes of ancient Greater Greece. Such statuettes often indicate that at the site where they were found, there was once a sanctuary dedicated to the goddess of the earth, agriculture, and fertility. In archaeological museums throughout Sicily you will see…
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Happy Valentine’s Day with a Kiss
Happy Valentine’s Day! Terracotta statuette of a reclining couple from the first century AD, excavated in 1967 in the Akradina district of Siracusa (Museo Orsi, Siracusa)
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Bronze Champion
During antiquity, bronze was not a material that sculptors in Sicily used often, so when I come across a bronze statuette like this one of an athlete in Siracusa’s Museo Orsi, I take note. This statuette is from c. 460 B.C., and according to the information in the museum, it is called “The Youth (Ephebe)…
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A Crown and a Dove
Clay statuette of Persephone-Aphrodite; On the goddess’ chest is the winged god Eros, who is holding a dove and a crown. This piece is dated to be from 460 B.C.E. I photographed it in Siracusa’s Museo Orsi.