Himera
Ἱμέρα | |
Location | Buonfornello, Province of Palermo, Sicily, Italy |
---|---|
Coordinates | 37°58′26.39″N 13°49′26.35″E / 37.9739972°N 13.8239861°E |
Type | Settlement |
History | |
Events | |
Site notes | |
Management | Soprintendenza BB.CC.AA. di Palermo |
Public access | Yes |
Website | Area Archeologica e Antiquarium di Himera (in Italian) |
Himera (Greek: Ἱμέρα), was a large and important ancient Greek city situated on the north coast of Sicily at the mouth of the river of the same name (the modern Imera Settentrionale), between Panormus (modern Palermo) and Cephaloedium (modern Cefalù) in the comune of Termini Imerese.
Many of its remains can be visited and there are two museums on the site.
History
Foundation and earliest history
Himera was the first Greek settlement on this part of the island and was a strategic outpost just outside the eastern boundary of the
The foundation of Himera is placed subsequent to that of Mylae (as, from their relative positions, might naturally have been expected) both by
Archaeology shows that around 580-560 BC the city was completely rebuilt after an unknown event destroyed it. There is otherwise very little information as to its early history: an obscure notice in
First interaction with Carthage
The magnitude of the armament sent under
After the Battle of Himera
This victory left Theron in the undisputed possession of the sovereignty of Himera, as well as of that of Agrigentum. He appears to have focused on Agrigentum, and left the government of Himera to his son
But though we are told in general terms that the period which elapsed from this re-settlement of Himera until its destruction by the Carthaginians (461–408 BC), was one of peace and prosperity, the only notices we find of the city during this interval refer to the part it took at the time of the
Destruction by Carthage
In 409 BC the prosperity of the city was brought to an abrupt end by the great Carthaginian expedition to Sicily. The ostensible object of the expedition was the support of the Segestans against their neighbours, the Selinuntines. The Carthaginians, though, had greater ambitions. Immediately after the destruction of Selinus, Hannibal Mago, who commanded the expedition, hastened to turn his arms against Himera. That city was ill-prepared for defence; its fortifications were of little strength, but the citizens made a desperate resistance, and by a vigorous sally inflicted severe loss on the Carthaginians. They were at first supported by a force of about 4000 auxiliaries from Syracuse under the command of Diocles, but that general feared for the safety of Syracuse itself and abandoned Himera, leaving the unfortunate citizens to contend singlehanded against the Carthaginian power. Their defenses failed and the city was soon taken by storm. A large part of the citizens were killed and at least 3000 of them, who had been taken prisoners, were put to death by Hannibal as a sacrifice to the memory of his grandfather Hamilcar.[15] The city itself was utterly destroyed, its buildings razed to the ground, and even the temples themselves were not spared.
Diodorus, who relates the total destruction of Himera, tells us expressly that it was never rebuilt, and that the site remained uninhabited down to his own times.[13] It seems at first in contradiction with this statement, that he elsewhere includes the Himeraeans, as well as the Selinuntines and Agrigentines, among the exiled citizens that were allowed by the treaty, concluded with Carthage, in 405 BC, to return to their homes, and inhabit their own cities, on condition of paying tribute to Carthage and not restoring their fortifications.[16] And it seems clear that many of them at least availed themselves of this permission, as we find the Himeraeans subsequently mentioned among the states that declared in favour of Dionysius I of Syracuse, at the commencement of his great war with Carthage in 397 BC; though they quickly returned to the Carthaginian alliance in the following year.[17] The explanation of this difficulty is furnished by Cicero, who tells us that, after the destruction of Himera, those citizens who had survived the calamity of the war established themselves at Thermae, within the confines of the same territory, and not far from their old town.[18] Diodorus gives a somewhat different account of the foundation of Thermae, which he represents as established by the Carthaginians themselves before the close of the war, in 407 BC.[19] But it is probable that both statements are substantially correct, and that the Carthaginians founded the new town in the immediate neighbourhood of Himera, in order to prevent the old site being again occupied; while the Himeraean exiles, when they returned thither, though they settled in the new town, naturally regarded themselves as still the same people, and would continue to bear the name of Himeraeans. How completely, even at a much later period, the one city was regarded as the representative of the other, appears from the statement of Cicero, that when Scipio Aemilianus, after the capture of Carthage, restored to the Agrigentines and Gelenses the statues that had been carried off from their respective cities, he at the same time restored to the citizens of Thermae those that had been taken from Himera.[20] Hence we cannot be surprised to find that, not only are the Himeraeans still spoken of as an existing people, but even that the name of Himera itself is sometimes inadvertently used as that of their city. Thus, in 314 BC, Diodorus tells us that, by the treaty between Agathocles and the Carthaginians, it was stipulated that Heracleia, Selinus and Himera should continue subject to Carthage as they had been before.[21] It is much more strange that we find the name of Himera reappear both in Mela and Pliny, though we know from the distinct statements of Cicero and Strabo, as well as Diodorus, that it had ceased to exist centuries before.[22]
Foundation of Thermae
The new town of Thermae or Therma called for the sake of distinction Thermae Himerenses,[23] which thus took the place of Himera, obviously derived its name from the hot springs for which it was celebrated, and the first discovery of which was connected by legends with the wanderings of Hercules.[24] It appears to have early become a considerable town, though it continued, with few and brief exceptions, to be subject to the Carthaginian rule. In the First Punic War its name is repeatedly mentioned. Thus, in 260 BC, a body of Roman troops were encamped in the neighborhood, when they were attacked by Hamilcar, and defeated with heavy loss.[25] Before the close of the war, Thermae itself was besieged and taken by the Romans.[26] Cicero relates that the Roman government restored to the Thermitani their city and territory, with the free use of their own laws, as a reward for their steady fidelity.[27] They were on hostile terms with Rome during the First Punic War, so it can only be to the subsequent period that these expressions apply; but the occasion to which they refer is unknown. In the time of Cicero, Thermae appears to have been a flourishing place, carrying on a considerable amount of trade, though the orator speaks, of it as oppidum non maximum.[28] It seems to have received a colony in the time of Augustus, whence we find mention in inscriptions of the Ordo et Populus splendidissimae Coloniae Augustae Himeraeorum Thermitanorum:[29] and there can be little doubt that the Thermae colonia of Pliny in reality refers to this town, though he evidently understood it to be Thermae Selinuntiae (modern Sciacca), as he places it on the south coast between Agrigentum and Selinus.[30] There is little subsequent account of Thermae; but, as its name is found in Ptolemy and the Itineraries, it appears to have continued in existence throughout the period of the Roman Empire, and probably never ceased to be inhabited, as the modern town of Termini Imerese retains the ancient site as well as name.[31] The magnificence of the ancient city, and the taste of its citizens for the encouragement of art, are attested by Cicero, who calls it in primis Siciliae clarum et ornatum; and some evidence of it remained, even in the days of that orator, in the statues preserved by the Thermitani, to whom they had been restored by Scipio, after the conquest of Carthage; and which were valuable, not only as relics of the past, but from their high merit as works of art.[32] The numerous examples of coins from Himera testify to the city's wealth in antiquity.
Site
The exact position of Himera was a subject of controversy until recent times.
Archaeology
Many parts of the ancient city have been excavated in recent years and can be visited. Of the lower city the main visible remains consist of the monumental Tempio della Vittoria (Temple of Victory), a Doric structure built to commemorate the defeat of the Carthaginians.
The upper city on top of the hill has remains of other temples and of many other buildings.
At various locations around the city were the town's
There are also impressive displays in Palermo's Museo Archeologico Regionale.
Famous people
Himera is said to be the birthplace of the poet Stesichorus but in fact he was born in the Magna Graecian town of Metauros (modern Gioia Tauro)[36][37][38][39][40] in 630BC. He moved to Himera in later life and wrote his poetry whilst a resident of the town.
See also
References
- ^ vi. 62, vii. 58.
- ^ Thuc. vi. 5; Strab. vi. p. 272; Scymn. Ch. 289; Diod. xiii. 62; Hecat. fr. 49; Scyl. p. 4. § 13.
- ^ Rhet. ii. 20.
- ^ Herod. vi. 24.
- ^ Id. vii. 165.
- ^ Herod. vii. 166, 167; Diod. xi. 20-23; Pind. Pyth. i. 152.
- ^ Herod. l. c.
- ^ Diod. xi. 48.
- ^ Id. xi. 49.
- ^ There is a confusion about this date, though, because Diodorus relates the circumstances in the year of Phaedon, Ol. LXXVI. 1, which would place it in 476 BC, he adds that the new colony subsisted 58 years, until its destruction by the Carthaginians, which would refer it to the year 466 BC. This last date is clearly incompatible with the fact that Theron died in 472 BC.
- ^ Id. xi. 53.
- ^ Id. xi. 68, 76.
- ^ a b xi. 49.
- ^ Thucydides vi. 62, vii. 1, 58; Diod. xiii. 4, 12.
- ^ Diod. xiii. 59-62; Xen. Hell. i. 1. 37.
- ^ Id. xiii. 114.
- ^ Id. xiv. 47, 56.
- ^ Cicero ''In Verrem ii. 3. 5.
- ^ Diod. xiii. 79.
- ^ Cicero In Verrem ii. 3. 5, iv. 33.
- ^ Diod. xix. 71.
- ^ Strabo vi. p. 272; Mel. ii. 7. § 16; Plin. iii. 8. s. 14.
- ^ Θερμαὶ αἱ Ἱμερᾶαι, Pol.; Θερμαὶ Ἱμέραι, Ptol.; Θερμὰ, Θερμὰ Ἱμεραῖα, Diod.
- ^ Diod. iv. 23, v. 3; Pindar Ol. xii. 28.
- ^ Pol. i. 24; Diod. xxiii. 9. Exc. H. p. 503.
- ^ Pol. i. 39; Diod. xxiii. 20. Exc. H. p. 506.
- ^ quod semper in amicitia fideque mansissent, Cicero In Verrem ii: 37.
- ^ Id. ii. 46, 75, iii. 42.
- ^ Castell. Inscr. Sicil. p. 47; Gruter. Inscr. p. 433, no. 6.
- ^ Plin. iii. 8. s. 14.
- ^ Ptol. iii. 4. § 4; Antonine Itinerary p. 92; Tabula Peutingeriana.
- ^ a b Cicero In Verrem ii. 3. 5.
- ^ Silius Italicus xiv. 232; Plin. iii. 8. s. 14; Vib. Sequest. p. 11.
- ISBN 0-691-03169-X), Map 47 & notes.
- ^ in ejusdem agri finibus, l. c..
- ^ "Stesichorus | Greek poet".
- ^ "Writers History - Stesichorus". Archived from the original on 2014-12-19. Retrieved 2015-07-13.
- ^ "Magna Grecia". Archived from the original on 2011-08-10. Retrieved 2015-07-13.
- ISBN 9780823210497.
- ^ "P.114-5. A History of Ancient Greek Literature". Archived from the original on 2014-12-19. Retrieved 2015-07-13.
- ^ Pind. Ol. xii.; Paus. vi. 4. § 11.
- ^ Diod. xix. 2.
Sources
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Smith, William, ed. (1854–1857). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography. London: John Murray.
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Further reading
- Curry, Andrew. "Mercenaries may have helped ancient Greeks turn the tide of war". In: Science. Published: October 3, 2022. Accessed: October 3, 2022. doi: 10.1126/science.adf1652
- Reinberger KL, Reitsema LJ, Kyle B, Vassallo S, Kamenov G, Krigbaum J (2021). "Isotopic evidence for geographic heterogeneity in Ancient Greek military forces". In: PLoS ONE 16(5): e0248803. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248803
- Reitsema, Laurie J. et alli. "The diverse genetic origins of a Classical period Greek army". In: PNAS 119 (41) e2205272119, October 3, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2205272119
External links
- Official website (in Italian)