SITO ARCHEOLOGICO DI MORGANTINA

This antique centre located 10 km from Piazza Armerina, quite extensive, is one of the least known in the interior of Sicily. Inhabited in the Bronze Age by the Sicanes, it was Hellenized in the 6th century BC and became flourishing between the 4th and 3rd centuries BC.

Half-devastated by the Romans in 211, the village entered a phase of decadence and ended up totally abandoned during the imperial period. The most interesting part of the ancient urban nucleus is the centre of the citadel, occupied by the Agora and the buildings linked to it.

The Agora is divided into two areas, located on different levels and connected by a large staircase. The upper agora includes the Senate seat, the Roman gymnasium and a covered market, while the lower agora is occupied by the theatre, the remains of a sanctuary apparently dedicated to the cult of the dead (the remains of many offerings have been found there), and by a long building dating from the 2nd century BC that has been identified as an enormous public granary. In summer, in odd years, at the end of July and beginning of August, Greek comedies are performed at night at the bottom of the stairs, where in ancient times popular gatherings were held. Residential areas developed around these areas with luxurious dwellings from the Hellenistic period, including the Doric capital house, the house of Ganimedes, famous for its rich mosaic flooring, and the house of the Golden Coins.