Brundisium, Calabria

Most Recent Visit: July 2023 The Roman city of Brundisium (modern Brindisi), located on the Adriatic coast of Calabria (modern Apulia) seems to have begun life as a settlement of the Messapi; though legends have the city being founded by the mythic king Diomedes of Thrace. The Messapi are thought to have originated in the…

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Sicilia – 2017

Having finished posting the sites of my swing through Sicily in the summer of 2017, I thought a short post tying everything together as an actual itinerary, as I did with my Spain trip in 2016, would be in order. I meant to post it last week, but didn’t get around to it. I definitely…

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Syracusae, Sicilia – Part II

Continued From Syracusae – Part I  Just to the west of the park, though outside, are some rows of tiered seating associated with a possible viewing area, referred to as the ‘linear theater’. This may be the remains of a 5th century BCE, or earlier, theater that preceded the theater in the park. It has…

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Syracusae, Sicilia – Part I

Most Recent Visit: June 2017. Though now overshadowed by Palermo, and even nearby Catania, the ancient city of Syracusae (Syrakousai) was perhaps the most important city on the island of Sicily in antiquity. Syracusae was founded on the island of Ortygia by Corinthian colonists (as well as Locrian or Dorian colonists, though they, as a…

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Catana, Sicilia – Part II

Continued from Catana Part I. The theater (along with the odeon) is arguably the centerpiece of the Roman monuments of Catana; it is certainly the most completely excavated and well-preserved of the Roman remains here. It is located at Via Vittorio Emanuele II 266. The theater is open every day from 9:00 to 17:00 and…

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Catana, Sicilia – Part I

Most Recent Visit: June 2017. Like many of the cities in eastern Sicily, the second largest city on the island, Catania, has its origin in one of the Greek colonies in that part of the island. The exact date of founding is unknown, but it is believed to be around 729 BCE when Chalcidian colonists…

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Tauromenium, Sicilia

Most Recent Visit: June 2017. The area around the modern city of Taormina, and ancient Tauromenium, seems to have been originally inhabited by the native Siculi people, who may have even dwelt on the site of Taormina. A few kilometers down the coast, though, in 735 BCE, the Greek colony of Naxos was founded. Naxos…

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Tyndaris, Sicilia

Most Recent Visit: June 2017. In the scheme of the ancient settlements of Sicily, Tyndaris (also referred to as Tyndarion in antiquity) was a relatively new city, being founded in the early 4th century BCE. Located on top of a hill at the location of the small modern town that bears its name, Tindari, ancient…

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Villa Romana di Patti, Sicilia

Most Recent Visit: June 2017. I had originally wanted to include the Villa Romana di Patti as part of my post on Tyndaris, as the proximity and travel route of the two complement each other well (Patti works as a good base for seeing Tyndaris, and so visiting works well before or after). My post…

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Thermae Himerenses, Sicilia

Most Recent Visit: June 2017. About 11 kilometers to the east of the modern town of Termini Imerese are the remains of ancient Himera. After a crushing Carthaginian defeat at Himera at the hands of the combined forces of Gelon of Syracuse and Theron of Akragas in 480 BCE ended the First Sicilian War between…

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