Selinunte is one of the most important sites for Greek and Punic archaeology in Italy. A Greek colony in Western Sicily, the city was founded ca. 630 BCE and was abandoned in 250 BCE, within the context of the First Punic War. Particularly in the sixth and fifth centuries BCE, before its conquest and destruction by the Carthaginian army in 409 BCE, the city was famous throughout the ancient Mediterranean for the richness of its farmland and its monumental temples. Due to its abandonment in 250 BCE and limited reoccupation until the Middle Ages, its public spaces, temples, fortifications, and houses are remarkably well preserved, allowing archaeological excavations to document the social history as well as the architectural and visual culture of an ancient city in unusually fine detail.
In 2006, the Institute of Fine Arts–NYU, in collaboration first with the Superintendency of Trapani and later with the newly established Archaeological Park of Selinunte and (since 2018) the University of Milan, initiated a project of topographical, architectural, and archaeological investigation of the main urban sanctuary on the southern urban hill, known as the acropolis. This was one of the largest public areas in the city, best known for its two large peripteral temples of the second half of the sixth century: Temple C, dedicated to Apollo, well known for its large pedimental gorgoneion and relief metopes featuring divine figures and heroic feats; and Temple D, dedicated to Athena. These large temples, their altars, and the stoas along the eastern and southern edges, mark this sanctuary as one of the main spaces for public cult and ritual activities before the Carthaginian conquest in 409 BCE. In the third quarter of the fourth century, when Selinus was extensively redeveloped within a general recovery of Sicily, the concentration of civic life on the south hill led to the occupation of much of the sanctuary with shops and residential housing, until the abandonment of Selinus in the First Punic War.
Within this large and complex area, our attention has focused, until 2022, on the southern portion, encompassing Temple C (ca. 540–510 BCE), Temple B (ca. 300 BCE), Temple R (ca. 570 BCE), and the so-called South Building, placed against the peribolos wall to the south of Temple B. Our topographic and architectural investigations, consisting of a new block-by-block study of the buildings based on a detailed graphic and digital documentation of the remains both at the site and in the Archaeological Museum in Palermo, have provided a new, complete reconstruction of Temple B (explored between 2007 and 2009 and restored as a prostyle tetrastyle of the Doric order, resting on a podium) and Temple R (explored since 2010 and consisting of an oikos originally articulated into a naos and adyton). These temples represent, respectively, one of the latest and one of the earliest monumental buildings at the site. No less important is the new analysis of the South Building, which suggests its identification as an impressive theatral viewing area, simple in design yet monumental in scale, with a capacity of ca. 500 seated people. This building may have served for viewing a variety of ritual performances in the open space between Temple R, dedicated to the cult of a goddess, and the entrance to the larger sanctuary. Finally, excavations along the south flank of Temple C (started in 2018) have brought to light remarkable evidence concerning this building’s construction process.
Stratigraphic excavations conducted since 2007, in conjunction with these topographical and architectural studies, have revealed an almost intact stratigraphic sequence ranging from the Early Hellenistic period down to the Bronze Age. This invaluable contextual evidence contributes significantly to our understanding of the history of occupation at the site, particularly for its earliest phases, including the time of the colonial foundation. The excavation of the intact Archaic, Classical, and Late Classical levels, sealed by a thick Hellenistic fill, inside the cella of Temple R, provides important new evidence concerning cult and ritual practice in this area of the sanctuary, particularly between ca. 630 and 325 BCE. Finds ranging from pottery to musical instruments help us to understand the ritual life of a Greek colony in one of the most culturally diverse regions of the ancient Mediterranean. Furthermore, the new analysis of Temple B and the excavations around its
altar contribute significantly to our understanding of the cultural dynamics during the later phase of occupation at Selinus, under the control of Carthage yet with a mixed Greek and Punic population.
Starting in 2023, the project has extended its investigation to the entire main urban sanctuary.
Find more information on the IFA Excavation at Selinunte here.
Technical skills used: Excavation; Architectural Study; Zooarchaeology; Archaeobotany; Ceramic and Small Finds Analysis; Coroplastics; Numismatics; Object Conservation; Architectural Conservation; Site Preservation; Geology; Geomorphology; Petrography; Geospatial Analysis; 3D Visualization and Reconstruction.
Contact: Clemente Marconi, Director (cm135@nyu.edu) and Rosalia Pumo, Co-director (rp78@nyu.edu)
This project accepts students. Interested students should reach out to Clemente Marconi (cm135@nyu.edu) and Rosalia Pumo (rp78@nyu.edu) for more information on participation and deadlines for applying. To participate in the project, candidates have to send an email to cm135@nyu.edu and rp78@nyu.edu with a CV and a brief statement, explaining their interest in the project (the deadline for submitting the application is variable, but usually around Nov 15th).