New buildings in the sacred area and a structure that currently appears to be a small temple, located behind Temple C, have been identified thanks to the latest excavations conducted at the Selinunte Archaeological Park.
«The research activities carried out in this area – says the Councillor for Cultural Heritage and Sicilian Identity Francis Paul Scarpinato – always reserve new discoveries and in this case they are very valuable finds. In the autumn, when the activities will resume, we will have clearer details on the extent of the discovery”.
For over ten years, archaeologists from the Institute of Fine Arts–NYU and the University of Milan have been carrying out archaeological excavations in Selinunte, studying in depth the urban sanctuaries within the great peribolos wall on the Acropolis and bringing to light portions of settlements and interesting artefacts. In particular, in this latest excavation campaign, great strides have been made, so much so that, if the hypotheses were to prove correct, the perimeter of the area could be rewritten.
The results of the latest excavations will be presented on Sunday 11 August, at 6 pm, at Baglio Florio, by the director of the Archaeological Park Happy Growing and from the archaeologist Clement Marconiwhich coordinates sixty collaborators and students who have carried out various investigation works in Selinunte.
The explorations concern several areas of the large urban sanctuary on the acropolis, among the most significant cult areas of the Greek world of the archaic and classical ages.where the mission has identified with certainty the large monumental entrance to the north-west, but also an area with a circular well, various objects, coins and a gold jewel, as well as a structure that would appear to lead to a small temple not yet known, not very large and without columns.
This year’s research has also brought news about ritual actions linked to the construction of Temple R: when it was built, the surrounding structures had been razed to the ground down to their foundations and various rites were conducted, almost as if to “purify” the area. Here, a “defunctionalized” iron spearhead (machaira) was found, that is, deprived of the tip and the edge of the blade, a ritual to symbolically make the weapon lose its offensive power.