paestum velia

guide

art director

enrica d’aguanno

scientific advice

laura del verme

page make-up

francesca aletto

translation

colum fordham

photographic references

soprintendenza per i beni

archeologici delle province

di salerno, avellino, benevento

(special office for archaeological

heritage of salerno, avellino and

benevento e caserta –

photographic workshop of the

museo archeologico nazionale

(national archaeological museum),

paestum: giovanni grippo

francesco valletta

© for the images: ministero per

i beni e le attività culturali (italian

ministry for heritage and culture)

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paestum, temple of neptune

and the basilica

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contents

4 paestum

17 the national archaeological museum of paestum

26 the narrative museum of the temple

of hera argiva

28 velia

4 archaeological plan of paestum

key to the

archaeological plan of

paestum

a entrance “porta cerere”

[gate of ceres]

b entrance/exit main gate

c entrance “porta nettuno”

[gate of neptune]

d entrance museum, ticket

office, bookshop

1 the temple of athena,

known as the temple

of ceres

2 ekklesiasterion

3 heroon

4 comitium

5 the temple of mens

bona, known as the

temple of peace

6 the amphitheatre

7 the roman forum

8 the temple of neptune

9 the temple of hera,

known as the basilica

porta giustizia

b

c 89

5

porta sirena

porta marina

porta aurea

a

5

6

74

3

2

1

d

Paestum is famous worldwide for its strik-

ing Greek temples which continue to cap-

ture the imagination of visitors. The temples

are still intact – few other ancient monu-

ments are so well-preserved – after more

than 2,500 years of natural disasters and

social upheavals. Paestum regained the po-

sition it deserved in European and Mediter-

ranean culture in the mid-eighteenth cen-

tury as a popular destination of the Grand

Tour – the journey of exploration and learn-

ing that formed the basis, and the elite ori-

gins, of modern cultural tourism. In pre-

history, the area is associated with the name

of the rural district of Gaudo which has

brought to light the traces of an imposing

cemetery, the subject of a recent exhibition

in the Archaeological Museum.

According to Strabo – the father of west-

ern geography – the Greek city was found-

ed by Achaean colonists fleeing from

Sybaris. The religious area of Agropoli on

which the medieval castle stands proba-

bly corresponds to the temple of Poseidon

[Neptune] Enipeus, the river god of Thes-

saly celebrated by the poet Lycophron.

6

paestum

7

The temple of Athena, known as

the temple of Ceres

8 paestum

9

The settlement of Poseidonia is bounded

to the south by Capodifiume, and contains

a mixture of sacred and secular spaces in

accordance with the typical urban layout

of Greek civilization.

Situated on the boundary with the Etr-

uscan-Campanian world, this defensive

outpost of Magna Graecia in the Sele riv-

er plain was founded by an Achaean mi-

nority from Sybaris in about 600 BC. Ev-

idence for this is provided by the founda-

tion inscriptions of a small temple (shrine)

lying to the south of the temple of Athena

(known as the temple of Ceres), whose

traces are imprinted in the roof of paint-

ed terracotta. The city occupies the lime-

stone shelf in the centre of a large plain

stretching from the hills of Capaccio, to the

east and the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west.

During the same period, the colonists

dedicated a large temple to the goddess

Hera to the north along the river Sele.

Known as the Heraion, the temple is situ-

ated at the mouth of the Sele [see p. 26],

which tradition associates with the deeds

of Jason, the hero of the Golden Fleece (the

fleece of the golden ram with magic heal-

ing powers). Rediscovered in the 1930s by

Umberto Zanotti Bianco and Paola Zancani

Montuoro, the temple was decorated by

carved metopes (now on display in the Ar-

chaeological Museum of Paestum), one of

the most important religious frieze cycles

in the archaic Greek world.

An important further development of the

city took place between the mid 6th cen-

tury BC, with paved streets, new houses,

sewers and drainage systems which trace

the urban area.

The area on the northern edge of the set-

tlement was dedicated to Athena, and

while the area to the south was dedicat-

ed to Hera; both are dominated by the

large temples. The rediscovery of the re-

ligious buildings in the eighteenth centu-

ry led to new attempts at interpretation,

and the analysis of scholars of the period

produced the first ‘evocative’ names.

The temple of athena (late 6th century BC;

restored and modified in around 520-510

BC) was identified as the temple of Ceres,

perhaps due to the suggestion of Vitruvius.

In his work de Architectura (first century

BC), Vitruvius refers to the Greek colonists’

custom of building a propitiatory temple

at the gates of the city, dedicated to the

goddess of harvests and agriculture.

Modern archaeological excavations have

finally re-established the historical ‘truth’

thanks to the discovery of votive materi-

al and statuettes of the goddess Athena.

The temple of Hera (530 BC), the oldest

temple in the site, was referred to as a

Basilica in the eighteenth century: ex vo-

tos and inscriptions once again enable the

temple to be rightfully restored to its ac-

Aerial view of the temples

on the following pagesThe temple of Neptune and the Basilica

12 paestum

tual association with the wife of Zeus, the

queen of the Greek pantheon.

Situated in the plain between the two tem-

ples, the agora (later the Roman forum)

was the centre of city life and took on a

monumental appearance in this period

with the heroon, the underground sacrar-

ium which the Greeks dedicated to the

founder of the city who was worshipped

after death as a divine hero. Bronze vas-

es (now in the Archaeological Museum of

Paestum) were found in the building.

They were still full of honey when exca-

vated and are masterpieces of metal-work-

ing in Magna Graecia.

All around there were private houses, with

large uninhabited areas and, along the riv-

er Sele, there was another cult building

dedicated to Hera of which the metopes

with dancing girls still survive.

The phase of expansion came to an end in

around 480-470 BC with two imposing

monuments: the temple known in the

eighteenth century as the temple of nep-

tune (mid 5th century BC), the emblem of

Doric architecture in the west, was actually

dedicated to the cult of Hera or – more like-

ly – to Zeus, as is shown by the painted ter-

racotta statuette with a beard and a

bronze crown; the ekklesiasterion (480-470

BC) was built in the agora, the area used

for public meetings; circular in shape and

with tiered seating, the building is a suc-

cessful combination of taste in terms of its

architecture and town planning (later cov-

ered with earth and stones by the Romans

who, during the republican period, built a

shrine in the area with a portico, fountain

and storeroom).

The morphology of the cemeteries confirms

the conquest of Poseidonia in the last two

decades of the fifth century – described

by Strabo – by the armies of the Lucani-

ans, an Italic people of Samnite origin.

The enormous wealth of the grave goods

reveal the new social model: weapons and

sophisticated jewellery, reflecting the sto-

ry of everyday life whose customs and rit-

uals were far removed from the sobriety

of Greek Poseidonia: banqueting, imagi-

nary animals, demons, still life. In short,

13

aristocratic civilization was immortalized

by the painted tombs which today repre-

sent, together with the monumental tem-

ples, the emblem and destiny of the

magical plain of Paestum.

Large-scale urban architectural building

was only resumed in the mid-fourth cen-

tury with the imposing city walls (originally

over seven metres high) which are still very

impressive today with three kilometres of

perimeter wall lining the environmental

and historical breadth of the ancient city.

There are four main gates: porta aurea to

the north, porta della sirena to the west,

porta giustizia to the south and porta ma-

rina to the east.

The comparison and contrasts between

the two identities incorporated within the

city’s foundation – the Greek spirit and the

Italic culture grafted onto it – are trans-

formed, as in all the most fascinating ex-

periences of history, into an inextricable

cultural osmosis: a stele found in the meet-

ing room, wedged in between two steps,

bears an inscription in Oscan, “for received

The Roman forum

14 paestum

grace”, built by the Lucanian magistrate

Statis and dedicated to “Iuppiter” [Jupiter];

in spite of political and institutional vari-

ations, it reflects the continuity in cult prac-

tice and civic traditions in about 300 BC.

The threat posed by Rome loomed on the

horizon. Poseidonia was asked to take

sides in the first Samnite wars, first

alongside the army of Pyrrhus and then

with the militias of Tarentum. The city, and

the Lucanians, were eventually defeated

and were forced to accept the status of

colony (273 BC). From this moment on-

wards, Paestum would remain a faithful

ally of Rome, even during the Punic wars,

and its urban layout underwent radical

transformations. During the second cen-

tury BC, the temple known as the ‘tem-

pio della pace’, with its Corinthian Doric

architecture (2nd-1st century BC), was

built in the northern side of the forum; ded-

icated to Mens Bona (the Roman deity of

reason, called upon to supervise the ca-

pacity for discernment of the political

class, subsequently became a symbol of

the gratitude of freedmen towards the

bona mens – ‘good mind’ – of their former

masters). The temple splits the comitium,

or meeting room, in two. During the mid-

first century AD, the amphitheatre (first

century AD; extended between the end of

the first and the beginning of the second

century AD) was built in the area behind

the forum to the north-east. Unfortu-

nately, in 1829, the amphitheatre was cut

through the middle by the modern road

which runs through the city.

During the Christian era, Paestum main-

tained and renewed its prestige. In its new

guise as a bishop’s see, the heart of social

life was transferred to the hill of Capaccio

Vecchio. Caput Aquis was destroyed in 1246

by Frederick II and fell into the obscurity of

memory and ‘romantic’ ruins. The city was

gradually submerged within the mists of the

unhealthy marsh which was only reclaimed

under the fascist regime, during the revival

of classicism which marked the prelude to

the Second World War.

15

The ekklesiasterion [area for meetings]

The amphitheatre

16

ground floor the greco-lucanian city

basement educational workshop and toilets

first floor the roman city

mezzanine floor prehistory and protohistory

a entrance museum,

ticket office, bookshop

b exhibition area

c educational section

1 vase by asteas with

the rape of europa

2 room of the metopes

3 tomb of the diver

4 painted lucanian

tombs

a

c

2

3

4

b

1

17

the national archaeological museum of paestum

The Museum provides a vivid portrait and

reconstruction of the identity and long-

term transformations of the archaeolog-

ical site. Visitors can admire the rich finds

that have emerged over the centuries from

the extraordinary mixture of temples,

civic residences and public places,

shrines, tombs, theatres and natural

‘man-made’ environments.

Based on the ambitious design of Maurizio

De Vita (1938), the museum opened in

1952 and is situated in the heart of the an-

cient city walls. It provides a linear pres-

entation of the four crucial periods of the life

of the city of Paestum and the surrounding

area, from prehistory to the osmosis and dis-

continuities of Greek, Lucanian and Roman

civilisations: the collection ranges from

the most ancient finds, the room of the

metopes from the temple of Hera at the

mouth of the river Sele, to the painted

tombs, first displayed from the 1960s; at

the centre is the icon of eternity, a journey

on the discovery of musical banquets and

games, the mystery of death, engraved on

the stone slabs of the Diver; the elegant

grave goods include everyday objects,

bronze vases, pottery and aristocratic sta-

tus symbols. There also displays of collec-

tions of material related to the Lucanian civil-

isation. More recent displays include the

section devoted to prehistory, on the mez-

zanine floor, and the rooms provide a suc-

cinct overview of roman paestum, on the

first floor; these rooms complete the mu-

seum itinerary which explores memory

and stratified identities.

An undisputed masterpiece of Italic black

figure pottery is the krater portraying

the rape of europa, made by the potter

Asteas (who was active at Paestum in

about the mid-fourth century BC); the vase

returned to Paestum in 2009 after an ad-

venturous journey which took it as far as

Malibu. The vase tells the story of Europa,

the daughter of the king of the Phoeni-

cians, and Zeus. In order to overcome Eu-

ropa’s reluctance, Zeus turns himself

into a gentle white bull who drags her out

to sea as far as the island of Crete where

the wedding is celebrated in the presence

of divine accomplices.

18 the national archaeological museum of paestum

Heracles kills the giant Alcyoneus

metope of the temple of Hera at the

mouth of the river Sele

Charon

tomb slab, from the Andriuolo district

20 the national archaeological museum of paestum

The tomb of the Diver

from Tempa del Prete

21

on the following pagesThe tomb of the Diver: the symposium

from Tempa del Prete

24 the national archaeological museum of paestum

Vase made of bronze [hydria] from

the Heroon [underground sacellum

of Poseidonia]

25

Red figure vase [krater] portraying

the rape of europa, signed by Asteas

26

As well as representing a milestone in ar-

chaeological research (1934), the temple

of Hera argiva provides one of the most

fascinating pieces of evidence for the cul-

ture of Magna Graecia. Amidst a back-

ground of history and legend, Jason’s ship

set sail with fifty companions aboard the

Argo. On his return journey, Strabo tells the

story of how the hero of the Golden

Fleece founded the temple dedicated to

Hera, the protectress of marriage, who was

the sister and jealous wife of Zeus: a pa-

gan cult thrived until the third century BC.

Christianity reinterpreted the cult, which

was also physically transferred to the hill

of Capaccio, so that it was transformed

into Our Lady of the Pomegranate: the

Greek deity changed spiritual register

but maintained the majestic appearance

The narrative museum of the temple

of hera argiva

the facade of the museum

the mouth of the river sele

27

of the matronly woman with the fruit

which is the symbol of prosperity.

Since 2001, the ‘narrative museum’ has

been housed in the Procuiali farmhouse. The

museum reconstructs the lost building of the

temple and the original rites of 2000 years

ago. Visitors can admire the innovative dis-

plays and multimedia solutions, 3D images,

films, sound effects and education panels,

in the peaceful natural surroundings with the

pastures of grazing buffalo.

28 archaeological plan of elea-velia

a entrance, ticket office, bookshop

b educational section

1 roman cemetery

2 roman baths

3 cobellis farmhouse

4 asklepieion [premises of the medical

school]

5 porta rosa [pink gate]

6 theatre

7 acropolis

1

ba

2

2

3

4

5

6

7

29

The site of the city of elea, known subse-

quently by the Latin name of Velia, now lies

close to the shore of Ascea Marina, be-

tween Agropoli and Palinuro. Its importance

in the ancient Mediterranean was due to

its strategic position on the route be-

tween Greece and Etruria. Stretching over

an area of 90 hectares of fertile country-

side, Elea-Velia was an important trading

port but gained fame and prestige in the

Greek world as a result of its remarkable

thinkers: the Eleatic school, including Par-

menides, Zeno and Melissus of Samos,

had good reason to choose this corner of

paradise, set in the southernmost part of

the Cilento, to meditate and make prose-

lytes; the philosophers Xenophanes and

Leucippus stayed within its hospitable

walls of the Roman city of Velia, as did the

precursors of a famous medical school and

the grammarians Statius (father of the

poet) and Palamedes, at least until 62 AD.

The inhabitants of Phocaea in Asia Minor,

exiled by the Persians and in search of new

homelands, conquered the city of Enotria

(the “land of vineyards”, according to the

Greek definition of the south of Italy): ac-

cording to Herodotus, this led to the foun-

dation of Hyele [Elea]; the original centre

(540-480 BC) stood on the acropolis, with

streets, drainage channels and open areas

between the houses, and was brought to

light during the excavation campaigns di-

velia

Bust of the philosopher Parmenides

from the college of the Augustales

30 velia

rected by Amedeo Maiuri, beginning in

1921. Between the fifth and second century

BC, the city housed cults dedicated to

Athena, while the peripheral urban area

stretched to the districts on the slopes of the

hill, in harmony with the landscape and cul-

tivated land with its natural terracing. The

residential areas in the southern and north-

ern parts of the site correspond to two ports,

which probably had different functions; to

the south lay the so-called “Diga Foranea”,

a fully equipped quay which stood just fifty

metres from the beach.

The perimeter walls and the surviving pub-

lic buildings still reveal a modern urban

centre, the paved street running along the

hill and linking the two districts, the

acropolis and the terraces of the ridge

where the religious buildings stand. The

itinerary ends with the gateway known as

porta rosa (fourth century BC; it was

named after the wife, Rosa, of the ar-

chaeologist Mario Napoli, from Salerno,

who dedicated the ‘discovery’ to her in

1964; although it literally means “Pink

Gate”, the name has nothing to do with the

colours of the stone blocks of the arch, ex-

cept perhaps at sunset). It is an unex-

pected and enchanting opening, joining

the symmetrical areas of the seashore and

the coast which are separated by the hill.

The theatre and the small thermal bath

building beside the Hyele spring on the

acropolis, the channel system for draining

rainwater, together with the small temples,

cult buildings, altars and votive memori-

al stones (small monuments in the form

of the shaft of column or pilaster, usual-

ly bearing an inscription), all reflect a live-

ly civic and religious life devoted to the en-

tire Greek pantheon.

The two ports and the highly effective de-

fensive fortifications (thanks to the lush and

impassable natural vegetation), together

with the diplomatic virtues that were innate

to the colonist-philosophers, enabled Elea

to resist Lucanian expansion which had in-

corporated Poseidonia; the location of

the city, situated midway between the

city-states of Magna Graecia, culminated

in the decision to form an alliance with

Rome. This allowed Velia to maintain full

autonomy and control of the sea routes of

the Tyrrhenian until at least 88 BC.

The buildings dating to the Roman period

of the site include two bath complexes, the

30

The acropolis with medieval buildings

cryptoporticus (1st and 2nd century AD),

probably the premises of the medical

school (Asklepieion) or, according to oth-

er interpretations, a gymnasium or palestra,

and the college of the augustales (the

priests in charge of administering the

rites of the imperial cult). The latter build-

ing has produced many interesting finds in-

cluding the Velia head, the emblem of the

city, and the sculptures with the portrait of

parmenides and the meritorious doctors.

The city’s decline began with the new road

system of the Empire, strengthening the

roads that provided direct links between

Rome and the east through the Adriatic,

and the gradual silting-up of the ports.

Velia was therefore left out of the main

communication routes and became a

sleepy fishing village. It was abandoned

in the ninth century AD due to outbreaks

of malaria and Saracen raids.

During the middle ages, in 1100 AD, a pala-

tine chapel dedicated to st Quirinus of

Neuss was built on the ancient acropolis in

the area just past the ruins of the theatre

(restored in the 2nd century AD on the old

hellenistic building). The Normans, led by

Guimar, built the castle in the early 13th cen-

tury in an ideal strategic position for scan-

ning the horizon for potential threats.

Castellammare della Bruca was built around

the castle and remained an active town un-

til the mid-seventeenth century.

31

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85

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02

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