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..:: AKRAI: The archaeologic park ::..

 
TRA LE PECULIARITA' DI PALAZZOLO:

THE GREEK THEATRE
(Il Teatro Greco)

The greek Theatre stands on the top of the hill and is the most distinguished monument in the archaeologic site of Akrai. Its construction dates back to the time of Hieron II. The theatre is relatively small but was enough for most of population (7.000 - 10.000 inhabitants). The theatre is made up of eight tiers, nine cuneus and twelve rows of seating, for a total of 700 places. It differs from other Greek theatres because it has not a semicircle upper angular development and it was not out of rock. Another particularity, which makes the Akrai theatre unique, is the semicircular orchestra's shape, which makes the scenes seem incredibly advanced compared to other theatres found in some colonies.

The stage is disfigured by a mill of the Byzantine age and by eight silos in which wheat was stored.

THE BOULEUTERION
(Il Bouleuterion)

Next to the theatre we can admire the Bouleuterion, a small sized building. It was the town senate (Boulè).

Another particular construction can be found near the boundary walls which enclosed the Bouleuterion. It is a circular building thought by most to be thermal baths from the Roman era and converted as baptistery in the Byzantine era.

BOUNDARY WALLS AND THE
ROMAN-HELLENISTIC ROAD
(Mura di cinta e strada ellenistico-romana)

The Akrai walls date back to between the IV and the second half of the II century B.C., but it is impossible to establish an exact date.

Excavations have uncovered a main road, fitted with a splendid and well preserved lava paving, that is 250 metres long and 4 metres wide between Syracuse gateway and Selinunte gateway.

Excavations have also revealed walls of houses along the road and intersections of the road with side streets called "stenopoi".

The city road system was built in two stages, one during the Hellenistic era and the other in advanced Roman era.

APHRODITE'S TEMPLE
(Tempio di Afrodite)

Located above the Greek Theatre, it was made up of six Doric columns at the front and thirteen to the sides for a total of 18.30 metres by 39.50 metres.

Uncovered thanks to the finding of an ancient inscription which allowed archaeologists to ascertain that there were three temples in Akrai: the Aphrodision, the Artemision and the Koreion.

THE LATOMIAS
(Le Latomie)

They were used as stone caves to draw the material needed for building homes and monuments in ancient Akrai. Later they were used as necropoli (buried place).

The Intagliata (L'intagliata)

It is of elliptical shape and it was accessed through a door situated under the theatre.

Inside this area numerous hypogeums, arcosolium burial grounds and baldacchino style tombs from Christian times can be found.

The Intagliatella (L'intagliatella)

It is a L shape and it is characterised by a series of votive niches containing "pinakes" (tables or painted votives), tombs and byzantine's houses. There are extremely sophisticated tombs with rich baldacchinos.

Besides there is a descriptive bas-relief (dated around the first half of the I century B.C.) that shows a banquet of heroes with a figure of a Roman warrior and a propitiatory or thanksgiving sacrifice. The bas-relief shows signs of complete uniqueness for the mixture of consolidated Greek and Roman models.

THE "SANTONI"
(I Santoni)

They are located in front of the feral temples. The site hosts 12 large reliefs, ten of which represent a seated woman, while the other two include more complicated scenes with many figures. It is the greatest sanctuary to date uncovered, dedicated to the cult of the oriental goddess of fertility Cibeles. This cult, coming from Phrygia, was initially introduced in Greece and then in Rome with the name Magna Mater or Ceres.

In 1787 the French painter Jean Houël made three interesting paintings of these reliefs.

THE FERAL TEMPLES
(Templi Ferali)

Located near the "Santoni", the quarry walls are made of hundreds of small grooves where votive offerings were placed for the dead, venerated by the living to a level of heroes as can be deduced from the "pinakes" (paintings) or from the inscriptions.

PINITA NECROPOLIS
(Necropoli della Pinita)

The most important monument in the prehistoric life of Palazzolo is located in a pinewood in front of the scenic road "Panoramica". It is made up of fifty-four small artificial grottoes and each tomb is oval shaped.

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