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Sicily : Agrigento and the Valle dei Templi

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Agrigento and the Valle dei Templi

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  • Aligned with Syracuse, Greek Akragas took part in defeating the Carthaginians at Himera in 480 BC. The town boasted a population of around 200,000, constructed temples to its gods, and was known for breeding horses, with which it consistently won the Olympic Games. After being beseiged by the Carthaginians in 406 BC, the town was taken by the Romans in 261 BC, renamed Agrigentum, and remained in Roman control until the fall of the Empire. Subsequent versions of Agrigento were built above the acropolis of the ancient city, now known as the Valle dei Templi (Valley of the Temples). Views of the ruins, set on rugged landscape and backed by the sea, are an unmissable sight.

    At Abbazia di Santo Spirito you can buy a selection of their homemade biscuits with almonds and pistachios. San Nicola is only open for weddings, but Sicilian weddings are frequent, so feel free to quietly have a look inside.
Top 10 Sights
  • Centro Storico 1. Centro Storico
    1. Centro Storico

    Pass through the historic centre to get to the Duomo, walking up from Via Ateneo via alley ways and passing artisans’ workshops and women pausing from their daily chores to chat.

  • 2. Abbazia di Santo Spirito

    The abbey dates from around 1290 and the resident Cistercian nuns still practise the centuries-old tradition of pastry-making, which was once the exclusive work of the convents.

  • 3. Temple of Herakles

    Amid olive and almond trees lie the ruins of this hexastyle temple dating from around 500 BC. It is the oldest of the temples still standing in Agrigento. Cross over the ancient street and walk over the stones to see the parts of the cella wall and Doric columns – particularly beautiful at sunset.

  • Temple of Concord 4. Temple of Concord
    4. Temple of Concord

    The hexastyle Temple of Concord remains intact because it was usurped for use as a church. It dates from 430 BC.

  • 5. Temple of Hera

    Patches of red at this temple to the queen of the gods (c.450 BC) indicate fire damage, perhaps from the Carthaginian siege of 406 BC.

  • Temple of Olympian Zeus 6. Temple of Olympian Zeus
    6. Temple of Olympian Zeus

    This jumble of massive stones is all that remains of what was the largest known Greek temple in the world.

  • 7. Sanctuary of the Chthonic Deities

    There are various jumbled remains of what was the walled sanctuary of the underground earth goddesses Demeter and her daughter Persephone.

  • Greek Roads, Gates & Walls 8. Greek Roads, Gates & Walls
    8. Greek Roads, Gates & Walls

    Walking from temple to temple throughout the valley one can see what is left of the infrastructure of the Greek city: roads with ruts, and city walls bearing the marks from later ages, when gaps were carved in to them to make room for new Byzantine tombs and gates.

  • 9. San Nicola

    The front of the church has an interesting 13th-century portal that incorporates materials from a Roman ruin, and a nicely arched interior in plain stone.

  • 10. Hellenistic/Roman Quarter

    Among knee-high ruins make out basins, columns, door jambs in walls, mills, steps, remains of the elaborate drainage system, and mosaic flooring in geometric designs.

Practical Information
Avoid the crowded restaurants at the temple site and have a meal in town (see Places to Eat). If you plan to see both the archaeological site and the museum, ask for a combined ticket – it won’t be offered automatically. Valle dei Templi: 0922 213 98 Open 8:30am–1 hour before sunset daily Adm €4.50 Archaeological Museum: Via dei Templi 0922 401 565 Open 9am–1pm Sun–Mon, 9am–1:30pm, 2–7pm Tue–Sat Adm €4.50 Combined ticket €6.20
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