Selinunt

Selinunt: Stadtplan und Befestigungen.

Location

Selinunt is one of the colonies founded in the second half of the 7th century B.C. by the eastern Sicilian Dorian colonial city of Megara Hyblaea. It is the western most Greek foundation on the southwest coast of Sicily. Through its close contacts with its Punic neighbors in western Sicily, and also especially with Carthage, the city soon developed into one of the largest and most prosperous cities in the Greek west. The great number of Dorian peripteral temples is vivid evidence of this fact.

Objectives

The exploration of the city that has produced these famous monuments is presently at the center of our interests. The participation of the Rome Department began in 1971 with the photography and examination of the Hellenistic fortifications on the Acropolis and then work was transferred to the wall from the Archaic-Classical period. Additionally, it became necessary to consider its relationship to the 100 hectare residential area that it enclosed. The photography of the entire city area on a scale of 1:500 formed the basis of this study. Through the acquisition of all known data up to the present time, in addition to a series of new excavation trenches, the regular plan of the colonial city has become more clear. An open area at the center of the site must indicate the Agora.  

Current Work

Since 1996, the Institute has occupied itself with the detailed investigation of this area in part through excavation. The first two excavation campaigns, financed by the DFG, led to the confirmation of the identification of the Agora, a clear definition of the street network as well as a first view of the densely developed east side. 

Cooperation

The work is being carried out in cooperation with the Soprintendenza of the Provinz Trapani and with financial assistance from the Deutsches Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). 

Bibliography

D. Mertens, Die Mauern von Selinunt. Vorbericht der Arbeiten des DAI Rom 1971-75 und 1985-87, Römische Mitteilungen 96, 1989, 87 ff.; D. Mertens, Griechen und Punier. Selinunt nach 409 v. Chr., Römische Mitteilungen 104, 1997, 301 ff. (Resümee). Die Endpublikation der Untersuchungen zu den Mauern und zum Stadtplan ist in Vorbereitung.