On Day 4 of Savoring Sicily, you’ll start the morning by greeting the gods at Agrigento’s Valley of the Temples. First stop, the 5th century B.C. Temple of Juno (or Hera, if you are Greek!). This magnificent monument is just one of seven in the UNESCO World Heritage Site that spans 2 kilometers. So wear…
Tag: greco-roman
Temple of Hera, Goddess of Marriage
The Temple of Hera (which in the Roman era was known as the Temple of Juno) is a 5th century BC temple dedicated to the Greek goddess of marriage, childbirth, and families. One of the many magnificent ruins at the UNESCO World Heritage Site Valley of the Temples, the Temple of Hera possesses an altar…
Unknown Star
This six-pointed star is an inlay in the terracotta pavement of the principal street at Solunto on the summit of Mount Catalfano in Santa Flavia. Scholars don’t know the sigificance of it. Solunto was originally a Pheonician settlement that was established between the 8th and 7th centuries BC. The Greeks conquered it in the 4th…
Immortal Leaves
This column capital from the small archaeological museum at Tindari is a classic example of Greco-Roman Corinthian architectural design. What we learned from our guide Sebastiano was that the ornamental leaves accenting the column’s top are from the Acanthus mollis plant (also known in English as bear’s breeches). Acanthus mollis and its sister-plant Acanthus spinosus…