Valley of the Temples

The most amazing ancient sight to visit in Sicily is the Valley of the Temples near Agrigento on the Southern coast. What makes these ruins exceptional is the number of structures that are close together, showing the size of the civilization present in the fifth century BC. There were 15 Doric-style temples built here during an 80-year period. Each temple was dedicated to a different Greek god. What remains of these temples is impressive.

The Temple of Juno was built in 460 BC and was still intact in 1500. It crumbled due to earthquakes and was rebuilt in 1787:

We were fortunate to visit the temples while the archaeological park is celebrating its 100^th anniversary and to commemorate it there was a fascinating art display titled “Quantum Man: There is No Future Without Memory.” The contemporary pieces are inspired by quantum theory and sit alongside ancient Greek architecture to provide a thought-provoking juxtaposition. This one sits alongside the ancient city walls:

The Temple of Concordia was built in 435 BC and is one of the best preserved in the world because it was transformed into a Christian church. In 1788 it was converted back to its original state:

(That's me with a statue of Icarus, presumably after he fell out of the sky.)

The rest of the temples are in ruins but still a pleasure to see. The Temple of Olympian Zeus, which was the largest in the ancient world, is hardly recognizable as a temple now. One of its defining features was its decorative telamon figures that held up the roof. At the sight is a copy (lying down in the photo below), and at the Pietro Griffo Archaeological Museum is an original, along with a model of how it appeared in the huge temple structure:

The museum, which has the most difficult to find parking lot ever, had an amazing collection of Grecian urns along with other artifacts. But the best part was the view back to the temples:

We spent the night at a lovely hotel in the area that also had a view towards the temples:

Too bad it got too cool for a dip in the pool.

If you do get to Sicily, don’t skip the Valley of the Temples!

Ciao,

Shana & Jeff