When I was in Sicily about two years ago, I was perusing maps of the island. One place kept drawing my attention but was a little to far away from my position on the east coast. That place has stayed with me and popped into my brain from time to time. Reminding me of its presence, nudging my curiosity and luring me with its mystery. Now its time, time to experience the magic of Selinunte, an ancient Greek city in Sicily.
Getting There
Located on the south western coast of Sicily in Italy, Selinunte is a massive archaeological park. For me to reach it from Castelvetrano, I take a single bus that only runs a few times a day. Cost is €1.50 and the ride takes about 25 minutes.
Currently there are two Salemi buses that depart the Castelvetrano station in the morning, 6:55 and 7:55am, and two returning in the afternoon at 14:00 and 15:30.
Brief History
Selinunte was one of the most important Greek colonies in Sicily and existed from 550BC to 250BC. At that time, it was abandoned and never re-occupied. The name Selinunte was derived from the vast quantities of wild celery that grew in the region, the leaf of which was the symbol used on their coins.
Selinunte was the furthest west of the Greek colonies and close to the Phoenicians in Lilybaeum. Initially the two groups co-existed but this came to and end and conflict ensued. In 409BC a large contingent of Carthaginians numbering 100,000 arrives and takes the city. Most of the citizens are killed and the remaining ones are allowed to stay in their broken homes.
Around 250BC the Romans are conquering Sicily. The Carthaginians and remainder of the original inhabitants pull back to Lilybaeum and destroy Selinunte completely as they leave.
It was never rebuilt.
Entrance
Walk from where the bus lets you off in the little town, past a green space and into the entrance area of the Archaeological Park. Inside this large building find the gift shop and ticket counter. The current price for one adult entry is €14 plus an extra €8 if you require a shuttle to take you from site to site. You see this was once a city of 30,000 people and the area is vast.
I chose to tackle Selinunte without the shuttle to save money and get some exercise. It was the right decision for me.
What to See
As you can imagine, there is a lot here, so I can narrow that down for you a little. After perusing the map, I can see there are four main areas. Two are full of temples, one is the museum, and the furthest only has two sites.
The first section, the East Hill, has THE temple, the one that you will see hundreds of photos of if you google the Selinunte. This happens to be the closest to the entrance and is next to several other temples that are laying in ruins.
From that area, I make my way to the museum and café at Manuzza Hill. This is a good point I feel to have a little rest and refreshment.
Next, I decide to cross the river valley and head for the acropolis. You can see a partial temple on the horizon from THE temple, and this is where you are heading now. The photo below will give you an idea of the distances you are walking.
I climb up the opposite river bank and to explore the acropolis that contains five more temples and a plethora of other sites. I’ll go into a little detail of some of these places now, but it will be brief otherwise this could turn into a novel.
East Hill (Temple E)
The Temple of Hera, or Temple E is THE temple. 😁 It dates from 450BC and is the result of reconstruction from original materials in the late 1950’s. She is glorious. This truly massive temple is multi level with a total of 42 huge columns each measuring over 10 meters tall.
As soon as you walk into the park from the entrance, look right. She will be there in all her glory. I head there without hesitation, growing more and more excited and teary eyed as I approached. This temple is simply breathtaking and will leave you without words.
If you look closely, you can see some of the original stucco still attached to several of the columns. Beside Temple E are F & G and they lay in ruins as they have for almost 2,500 years. They are older than the Temple of Hera, dating to around 540BC.
Manuzza Hill & the Museum
The building here is an old winery and houses a very simple museum. Most of the artifacts from Selinunte seem to have ended up at the large museum in Palermo. Still, there remain a few treasures to give one the idea of what was found at this site.
While here, enjoy a coffee and treat or sandwich from a lovely café. Sit in the courtyard and relax in peace and quiet while you plan the next part of your adventure.
The Beach
I’m not sure if every visitor will be able to access this area or if it was a fluke that the gate was open. Regardless, on my way to the Acropolis on the other side of the river, I took the smaller path across the meadow, and it led me to a gate.
Through I went, following the picturesque little river and low and behold I ended up at a gorgeous sandy beach! What a bonanza!!
Within a heartbeat, I had my shoes off, pants rolled up and was into that water. Absolutely crystal clear and glorious. If you happen to see that little gate open just before you cross the river, take the detour!!
The Acropolis
Located high on a limestone cliff is the Acropolis. What a momentous number of ruins this contains. It once had five towers and four gates. Here find five large temples, O, A, B, C & D as well as shrines and a Byzantine village!
The most prominent feature in the Acropolis is Temple C, the Temple of Apollo, and also the oldest dating from 550BC. Fourteen of the seventeen columns on the north side have been re-erected and you can see these from miles around.
I can encourage you to explore the acropolis fully. Its such a huge area and luckily there are sign posts and boards at each main site, explaining in English and Italian, what you are seeing. Many of the original fortifications are still in place too and really provide a great way to experience just how huge this part of the city was. Feeling peckish? There is a full bar/restaurant here with the most spectacular views imaginable.
I have to end this post here. What I can tell you is that Selinunte is worth every effort to see and experience. The sheer vastness of the site, size of the temples and immensity of the views is astounding. It was an emotional time for me, to finally have made it here. I have only ever really seen and pursued Roman history so for this to be my first of the Greeks is truly something beyond wonder.
