The Archaeological Park - Selinunte
The park of Selinunte is one of the largest and most important archaeological areas at the European level.
There you can admire the highest level of Doric style production but there are also traces of local influences.
The Park is open all through the year.
In summer it is open from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
In the winter it is open from 9.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m.
Ticket 6.00 €
Reduced (age 8 -25) 4.50 €
Free entry for the citizens of the European Community aged under 18 or over 65
Box office Tel: 0924 46277
In the park there are 8 temples. The Park is so large that can be divided in 4 areas:
THE ACROPOLIS (south)
This is the most wealthy and beautiful area of all the archaeological park.
On the southern side it is surrounded by a solid wall that falls sheer to the sea. It had a very strong defense system and an advanced urban structure.
In the acropolis there are 5 of the 8 temples of the park.
MANUZZA HILL (north)
This is the fertile area where the first settlers established themselves. In this area there was the city. In the 4th century, when the golden period of Selinunte ended, the inhabitants moved to the acropolis.
THE EASTERN HILL
There you can find the temples E, F and G. The latter perhaps was dedicated to Apollo or Zeus but surely deserves a particular attention: because of its 110 meters in length and 50 meters in width it was not only the largest of the city but one of the most imposing of all the ancient world.
THE GODDESS MALOPHOROS SANCTUARY (west)
The Sanctuary dedicated to the goddess Malophoros (bearer of pomegranate), one of the local expressions to indicate the mother earth, is on the west hill. It was used for a very long period, from the 7th century until the period before the distruction of the city when it was dedicated to the Punic divinities.
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