Sicily, Italy

 Agrigento Sicily

You know that Agrigento is built on a hill when you walk anywhere in the upper town or venture out to explore the misnamed UNESCO designated Valle dei Templi (Valley of the Temples) that extends along a ridge overlooking the sea, a km or so down the mountain side from the modern town. We elected to take the bus to the archaeological site, saving our strength for several hours of exploring all the temples.

The area of the Valley of the Temples has been inhabited since prehistoric times but did not become a city until settlers from Rhodes and Crete arrived in 580BC and named the site Akragas. The city thrived and survived a sacking by the same Carthaginians who sacked Selinunte. The city was rebuilt only to be conquered by the Romans in 210BC and renamed Agrigentum. Like many of the Sicilians cities, the city suffered through later occupations by the Byzantines, Saracens and the Arabs in the 9thC who established a new town in the heart of the current town and renamed it Girgenti. Then the Normans took over until Sicilians finally gained independence under Garibaldi in 1860. It wasn’t until 1927 that Mussolini gave the city back its Latin name of Agrigento.

Graves in the wall

temple dedicated to Demeter Malaphorus and her daughter Persephone

We walked to the far end of the Eastern section of the site alongside the ancient city walls that stretched 12 km along the ridge. They are now riddled with holes used as graves by Christians during the Roman and Byzantine periods. There was also a necropolis (burial site) partially open for viewing built on ancient cisterns. At the end of the site was the best preserved and most complete temple in the area, the huge Templo della Concordia built in 430BC. There are seven other temples in the site, not as well preserved as Concordia but all impressive in their own right.

We took a lunch break before continuing to the smaller Western section. There we encountered a small temple dedicated to Demeter Malaphorus and her daughter Persephone, the same goddesses we had encountered in Selinunte. Information at the site indicated that hundreds of devotees would come to the site, sacrifice piglets on an altar next to the temple and have a pig roast afterwards, a fun event. An Agrigentian environmental group has revived the Giardino della Kolymbetra, formed in a canyon in the 5thC BC with slave labour to provide the city’s irrigation system and a pool for fish farming. We passed up the opportunity to hike through the gardens for several more hours. We were ready to return to our room for a rest.

Our dinner the previous evening was so good we returned for a second visit. The staff recognized us and gave us the same pre-dinner champagne plus a small liquor to help digest our delicious meal. Try Kalos restaurant if you are in Agrigento. You will not be disappointed.