Segesta — Elymian Temple
5th c. BCE·Elymian (Greek-influenced non-Greek)·🇬🇷 Sicily, Greece
About
About Segesta — Elymian Temple
Segesta — Elymian Temple in Sicily, Greece is a 5th c. BCE temple-complex attributed to Elymian (Greek-influenced non-Greek). Unfinished Doric temple 61 × 26 m with 36 columns unfluted on hill 420 m, with theatre above. Peristyle without cella due to abandonment during war with Selinunte, later Elymian theatre 4000 seats.
Why it mattersType-site for Elymian (Greek-influenced non-Greek) temple-complex studies
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Phasing sequence
- 02Function and cult identity
Theories
- 01Panhellenic competition centre
- 02Colonial foundation model
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 430–420 BCE
- Period
- 5th c. BCE
- Culture
- Elymian (Greek-influenced non-Greek)
- Purpose
- Unfinished Doric temple 61 × 26 m with 36 columns unfluted on hill 420 m, with theatre above
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 430–420 BCE
Initial construction
c. 1880 CE
Systematic excavation
On the ground
Structures & features
37.9410° N · 12.8320° E · 420 m · 3 mapped features
Segesta — Elymian Temple — Principal Temple
templeMain peripteral temple
37.9412° N · 12.8321° ESegesta — Elymian Temple — Stoa / Sanctuary Enclosure
stoaPortico enclosure
37.9408° N · 12.8322° ESegesta — Elymian Temple — Theatre/Stadium Annex
theatreAnnexed games or assembly building
37.9415° N · 12.8318° E