Segesta

Situato in spendida posizione, tra dolci colline dai colori ocra e rosso bruno che formano un piacevole contrasto con le infinite tonalità di verde, il Parco Archeologico è dominato dalla mole dell'elegante tempio dorico.

L'antica Segesta, fondata probabilmente dagli Elimi, come Erice, diviene ben presto una delle principali città del bacino mediterraneo di influenza ellenistica e, nel V sec. è la più grande rivale di Selinunte. Per difendersi da quest'ultima, fa appello, nel 415 a.C. agli ateniesi, che vengono però sconfitti da Siracusa, alleata di Selinunte. Nel 409 a.C. sollecita allora l'aiuto dei cartaginesi che, giunti in Sicilia, annientano Selinunte ed Himera, vicino Palemo. Segesta viene a sua volta distrutta dal siracusano Agatocle nel 307 a.C, e rinasce con i romani.

Non si conoscono invece le sorti della città nel periodo successivo, anche se si suppone una sua distruzione da parte dei Vandali; il luogo continua ad essere abitato nel Medioevo come attestano i resti del Castello Normanno ed una piccola basilica triabsidata (poi abbandonata e ricostruita come eremo nel XV sec.), situati ove si trovava la zona nord dell'antica Acropoli. Quest'ultima sorgeva in due zone divise da una sella: la zona sud-est era residenziale, mentre quella a nord ospitava gli edifici pubblici, tra cui il teatro.

 Il Tempio di Segesta, uno dei monumenti più perfetti a noi giunti dall'antichità, si innalza, in maestosa solitudine, su un poggio circondato da un profondo vallone incorniciato da Monte Bernardo e Monte Barbaro, sul quale si trova il teatro. Eretto nel 430 a.C., è un elegante edificio dorico dalle proporzioni di una rara armonia. Il peristilio ha conservato quasi completamente intatte le 36 colonne, in magnifico calcare di una tinta dorata e prive di scanalature. Questo fatto e la mancanza di una cella interna ha fatto supporre che la costruzione sia stata abbandonata prima della fine.

A questa teoria si oppone però l'opinione di alcuni studiosi per i quali l'assenza di ogni traccia della cella interna (punto da cui normalmente la costruzione veniva iniziata), testimonierebbe che l'edificio è in realtà un peristilio pseudotemplare. A questo si aggiunge il mistero della sua destinazione, visto che non è stato ritrovato alcun elemento che possa indicare a quale divinità fosse dedicato.
La strada che sale verso il teatro (circa due chilometri, percorribili anche con una comoda navetta) offre una magnifica vista sul tempio. Prima del teatro, sulla destra si possono vedere i resti dell'Eremo di S. Leone con una sola abside, ma costruito su un precedente edificio triabsidato e, alle spalle, i ruderi del castello normanno.

Il Teatro, edificato nel III sec. a.C. in periodo ellenistico, ma sotto la dominazione romana, è costituito da un perfetto e vasto emiciclo di 63 m di diametro sistemato su un pendio roccioso, i gradini sono orientati verso le colline dietro le quali, sulla destra, si intravede il Golfo di Castellammare. Ogni due anni, in estate, il teatro rivive, si riempie di spettatori pronti ad assaporare, in un legame senza tempo, le grandi tragedie e commedie che avvincevano gli Antichi.

It looks as if it were built yesterday. Segesta's ancient Greek temple can make a valid claim to being the best preserved in the world, and its amphitheatre boasts a hilltop position on Mount Barbaro second to none. The archeological site, about seventy kilometers southwest of Palermo, reflects the presence of several ancient civilizations, beginning with the elusive Elymians. While the magnificent Doric temple, though (strictly speaking) never completed --as the roof was never added and the pillars never fluted-- is impressive, it is just the highlight of a large archeological park.
For its remote rural setting, Segesta in springtime is a magical place, nothing like Agrigento, which lies at the edge of a modern city. And what of the Elymians?

Truth be told, precious little is known of the Elymians (or Elymi), founders of the place initially called "Egesta." Originally from Asia Minor (possibly Anatolia), they arrived in Sicily to settle some of the island's western regions around 1200 BC (BCE), during more-or-less the same period that the Sicels, migrating from peninsular Italy, colonised the northeastern part of the island. Both coexisted with the indigenous Sicanians. During the Greek domination which began circa 600 BC most of the Elymians, including those of Egesta, Entella and other settlements, readily assimilated with Greek culture. Evidence suggests that the Elymians of Eryx, however, assimilated more with Punic (Carthaginian) culture.

This all seems rather arcane, but inscriptions in what is presumed to be the Elymian language, written in Phoenician and Greek characters, have been found at Segesta, along with pieces of pottery bearing script similar to that of a specific region of Asia Minor. The Greeks freely intermarried with the Elymians, but initially prohibited marriage with the Sicanians, who they considered barbarians.

Segesta emerged as one of the most important Siceliot (Sicilian-Greek) cities of antiquity. The Segestans themselves were a formidable force both economically and militarily. The hilltop site of the ancient city was inhabited into the Middle Ages, and boasts the crumbling ruins of a Norman castle, a small church and a mosque, along with a classical amphitheatre.

Built before 430 BC, the Doric temple is the focal point of Segesta. The temple is just over sixty meters long and twenty-six meters wide, built upon four steps, with a total of thirty-six Doric columns. There are fourteen columns on each side of the building and six columns across the front and back.

At a diameter of around sixty-two meters, the amphitheatre is not very large but still impressive. It offers a high vantage point from which to view the surrounding valleys.

A colorful theory is widely accepted which advances a reason for the temple's construction. In 450 BC, Segesta's rival, Selinunte, allied herself with Syracuse, one of the most powerful city-states of Magna Graecia. Segesta sought help outside Sicily, turning to Athens for aid. To the Athenians, Segesta was only a distant city of little importance. Before they would consider an alliance with Segesta they sent a delegation of diplomatic envoys to investigate the city's claims of wealth. In order to deceive the Athenians into thinking their city more prosperous than it actually was, the Segestans built the temple to impress their visitors. Once the envoys departed, convinced of Segesta's wealth, work on the Temple ceased. Yet its incompleteness cannot compromise its grandeur.

Though founded centuries earlier, the recorded history of Segesta begins around 500 BC. The Greek colony of Selinunte, just sixty kilometers south of Segesta, had dramatically grown and prospered since its founding around 650 BC. This alarmed the Segestans, who initially welcomed the Greeks but later viewed the rapidly expanding power of Selinunte as a serious threat. Likewise the Carthaginians, whose cities were spread from Mozia, near present-day Marsala, to Solunto, viewed the Greeks as a double-edged menace rapidly approaching them on two fronts --Himera on the northern coast and Selinunte on the southern one. Segesta allied itself with Carthage. However, with the great victory of the combined Greek armies over the Carthaginians at Himera in 480 BC, the Segestans quickly changed sides, becoming allies of Athens, one of the victorious Greek cities. (The Greeks often fought among themselves; the Greek colonies in Sicily were rarely united and had been founded by Greeks from various cities in Greece).

If medieval chronicles all but ignore Segesta, in ancient ones she is little more than a footnote to epic conflicts. Yet in places like Segesta, certain things seem to have changed little in many centuries. Paestum has grassy fields, Agrigento almond groves, and Segesta its grassy slopes.

What became of the Segestans? Nearby Calatafimi was essentially an Arab city of mosques and veiled women. Still, it is probable that the medieval Segestans abandoned their city for nearby towns such as Erice (Eryx). The ancient sculpture of Segesta leaves us with an idealized impression of a healthy, attractive people.

For Visitors: It's convenient to drive from Palermo, though bus service from that city is tricky. At Segesta's archaeological park, there's a shuttle bus to take you from the parking area to the amphitheatre and urban excavations. The nearest locality is Calatafimi.

Dramatic Productions: Each Summer, a series of classical Greek dramas is performed (in Italian) at Segesta's ancient amphitheatre, but many of these productions feature actors and actresses wearing casual clothes instead of classical costumes. Since important promotional elements like online schedules --in English-- and advance ticket sales have been ignored, it's difficult to plan a Segesta show as part of your trip.