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Visit Segesta
Segesta is the site of an important temple, and once an important Ancient city, to the north-west of Sicily.
The most significant monuments in Segesta are the temple, Theatre and Sanctuary, in the “Contrada Mango". It is interesting to understand how the Greeks arrived at the structure of the temple and other monuments, a knowledge of which greatly enhances a visit, hence a rather detailed article about these important monuments:
Segesta temple
From the mid-fifth century BC the whole range of Greek architecture was established at Segesta, and the Doric temple of Segesta is an example of "international style" architecture, in the sense that the Doric forms were quite simple.
The temple is hexastyle-peripteral ( i.e. has a colonnade that runs around its perimeter), with six columns in front, and a peristyle of columns, a typical form of Greek architecture and found in almost all their monuments. The temple is a parallelogram in shape (with a length of 70 meters and a width of about 21 meters ), the lower sides of which, according to a typical technique of religious buildings, look out toward the east and west, so that the temple showed its 'face' to those who came from the city.
The Segesta temple is located on a high base, divided into four steps, the lower of which is of lesser height, while the upper, left unfinished on three sides, forms a kind of dado under each column that gives the appearance of a pedestal (the diameter of the columns is less than 2 meters, while the top diameter is 1.5 meters, and the height of the columns is about 10 meters).
The thirty-six columns, more than 9 feet high, form the peristyle and are placed on a single stylobate (base) measuring over 6 by about 27 meters. The intercolumnia, slightly surpassing the diameter of the columns, are closer to the corners, a technique used in Greek art to increase the soundness of the building, and to ensure an ideal distribution of the triglyphs of the frieze, which always correspond to the axis of the columns and the mid intercolumnia. The cornice, consisting of an architrave, ornamented at the top with a row of rings below each triglyph, and a strip across its width, is surmounted by a frieze composed of triglyphs alternating with smooth metopes. This structure is then crowned by a cornice and a pediment, which increase the effect of this majestic temple and give an impression of solidity and intensity.
A remarkable peculiarity of the temple of Segesta, although it is not at all without some examples in the architecture of Greece, is that the columns are not perfectly fluted, as is typical of the Doric order. From this observation we infer that the temple of Segesta was never completed, because usually the work of the grooves on the columns was carried out when they were already placed to better ensure the effect of the engraving.
Scholars have also debated a great deal about the deity to whom the temple was dedicated. Some attribute it to Ceres, while for others it is a temple dedicated to Diana. Still others believe that it was dedicated to Venus. (It is certain, however, according to the proof of Cicero ("In Verrem”, IV), that there existed in Segesta a temple of Diana, and inside there was the statue of the goddess.)
Segesta Theatre
The theatre in Segesta dates back probably to the IV-III century BC, and is located in one of the best areas of the town. Built of large masses of stone (without cement and lime), the theatre was quite isolated and of semi-circular shape, with part of the stage facing west. The “cavea” is contained in a semicircle of about 60 feet diameter.
The theatre stage, of which few traces remain, was once decorated with columns and pillars.
Historical notes about the Segesta theatre site:
Several doubts concerning the date of construction of Segesta Theatre have emerged, but the original construction of the “cavea” is thought to date from the late 4th century BC: "[...] A chronology of the original ‘cavea’ as dating from the second half the fourth century BC (...) is credible, but ... we can not exclude some restructuring and functional adaptation...the current shape of the seats suggests the II-I century BC, but we cannot reasonably deny the possibility that these have been replaced [...] "(M.L. De Bernardi, “Analisi delle anomalie architettoniche dell’attuale ‘cavea’ del Teatro di Segesta” in “Terze Giornate internazionali di studi sull’area elima”, Proceedings, I, 2000: 386).
There is a wonderful overview of the theatre, by Abbot Niccolò Maggiore, who, after the first excavations (1822), observed the new discovery with enthusiasm (1823): "[...] The theatre of Segesta is already clear of all that earth that buried him...Of the scene (stage) there is only a part of a wall and nothing remains of the proscenium. In the two opposite corners of the wall we saw two Satyrs carved on the same stone wall(…) There are pieces of columns of various diameters, lintels, arches, cornices, some of Doric, other of Ionic style (See Niccolò Maggiore, "Bulletino", 1823: 170-171).
Other Segesta monuments and highlights
At the foot of Mount Barbaro, in "Contrada Mango", excavations have unearthed the remains of a sanctuary from the Archaic period, surrounded by a large rectangular wall of square blocks. Inside they found the remains of one or more buildings in the Doric style, built between the sixth and fifth centuries BC.
Finally, our archaeological "tour" can be successfully concluded with a beneficial sightseeing to the famous ‘Thermae of Segesta', patronized profitably by the Greeks, Romans and Arabs, who knew the health properties of these sources, which consisted of good water for the treatment of rheumatic, dermatological and respiratory diseases. In the nineteenth century, close to the “Thermae”, a very auspicious Greek inscription was found, "Asoteria Iaskarin" or " For the benefit of your own health".
Nearby, in an environment of great scenic charm, there are places that offer the chance to taste the local cuisine of Calatafimi-Segesta, which offers a wide variety of products such as tomatoes, eggplant in olive oil, jams and some dishes as the "pisci d’ovo", an omelette with bread and cheese, pasta with sardines and fish soup, or roast, meatballs and vegetables.
See also Segesta history and etymology.
See the the Sicily travel guide for more places to visit in the same region as Segesta.