Magna Graecia is a land of history, culture and archaeology that enchants anyone who wants to rediscover the roots of a refined and flourishing civilisation. With its ancient cities, such as Metapontum, Siris and Heraclea, this land tells of a past rich in traditions, architectural splendour and agricultural innovations.

In this journey we will explore, thanks to Adele Pelazza, the most significant archaeological sites, including Doric temples, mosaics and ancient fortifications, to understand how the memory of this glorious civilisation is intertwined with the present, offering us a new way to find ourselves along the path of history.

THE MAGNA GREECE

The refined civilisation of Magna Graecia, where the colonies of Metapontum, Siris, Heraclea and Pandosia stand out for their prestige, was rich and flourishing, their agricultural economy predominantly based on wheat, so much so that the ear of wheat is the symbol of Basilicata and can be found on a series of bronze and gold coins.

The ability to organise agricultural activities is evidenced by the ‘Tables of Heraclea’, now in the National Archaeological Museum in Naples.

Two important Greek colonies in southern Italy are located in the Policoro area : Siris and Heraclea. The former, founded in the 7th century BC by Greeks from Colophon (in Asia Minor) was destroyed in the 6th century BC by the Achaean colonies of Metapontum, Croton and Sybaris. In 433/432 BC, the city of Heraclea was founded in its place by Tarentum and Thourioi. The remains of a mud-brick fortification, which encircled the upper part of the settlement, and small sacred areas located near springs in the valley below, which were in use until the Roman conquest, can be traced back to the Siris phase.

Also on the hill overlooking the settlement, craft workshops from the 4th – 3rd century B.C. were brought to light, destined, in the Herakleia phase, for the production of ceramics and votive statuettes. Living quarters inserted in a regular urban layout and characterised by buildings, also with floor mosaics, also refer to this period.

The Archaeological Area of Metapontum

The Metaponto Archaeological Area is an archaeological site consisting of the excavations of the ancient city of Metaponto, in Lucania, in the municipality of Bernalda (MT). The archaeological park is behind the National Archaeological Museum of Metapontum, where many of the artefacts found there are kept, close to the State Road 106 Jonica.

The most important testimonies of the site are the antiquarium (an octagonal structure), the theatre, the Roman castrum, the town agora, the necropolis, the temples of Lycian Apollo, Demeter, Aphrodite, and the undoubtedly most famous monument are the Tavole Palatine, a temple dedicated to Hera. In the sacred area are the temple of Athena, the temple of Apollo and the temple of Hera, all in Doric style built around 570 BC.

The temple of Aphrodite, on the other hand, was built around 470 BC in the Ionic style. In front of the entrances to the temples are altars with various decorative elements. To the east is the wall protecting the sacred area that separates it from the agora where the theatre is located, behind which stands the altar dedicated to Zeus.

To the south is a large portico and a trapezoidal enclosure with the remains of two imposing structures, identified by some historians as a place dedicated to prediction in mystery religions and also visited by the shaman Aristeas. The city is protected by a 6th century B.C. wall with monumental entrances.

Magna Graecia is not only the past but is a synthesis of memory and the future.
To retrace the places of Magna Graecia is to feel the certainty of one’s origins is a new way of finding oneself along the way.