Philosophiana Whoever decides to take a trip to south-central Sicily
, you will not miss a step in
Villa Romana del Casale Piazza Armerina of
, famous worldwide for its beautiful mosaics. Few however know that only 5-6 km away from it there is another archaeological site, which is part of the history of that famous house, identified with the
STATIO [1] Philosophiana , described in
'Itinerarium Antonini [2] .
The district Sofiana Philosophiana or is in the territory of Mazarin, on the edge of the Piazza Armerina, which is not more than 10 miles on a plateau of about 8 acres, next to the river Nociara - Gela, and crowned by a series of mountains ( Monte Navone, Alzacuda Monte, Monte Psalter, Monte Cheese and Fennel), where on a clear day you can see Mount Etna!
Thanks to an agreement between the "Villari Litterio" of Archaeological Groups in Italy in Piazza Armerina and Superintendent of Caltanissetta, the site of Philosophiana can be visited by contacting the Director of the Section, Mr. Hugh Adam, who passionately and kindness will guide you. The
Statio Philosophiana dates from the fourth century. AD . but its history goes back a few centuries earlier.
the beginning of the first century AD the emperor Augustus, in order to organize the storage of grain and oil and to levy taxes on the island better, authorized the restructuring and the creation of some cities. In this moment in history was thus founded a city of great extent which probably was named in memory of the same name Gela rhodium-Cretan colony, destroyed in 282 BC by Finzi, the tyrant of Agrigento. Some of the inhabitants of Gela were taken prisoner and transported to the town of Licata, but others managed to escape to the hinterland, and there they settled in villages scattered.
Thanks to the reform of Augustus, the new city of Gela , born from the union and his organization spread those settlements in the hinterland behind the coast of Gela, became one of the most important centers of collection and sorting of agricultural products to ports of the coast, both for the fertility of the land that for the intermediate position along the road between Catania and Agrigento . The city reached its peak in the first two centuries of Roman, when he was succeeded in one thermal plant, of which few traces remain visible today, as a result of successive transformations.
Following the changing role of Sicily in the economic life of Rome - the sources of supply of grain moved to Egypt - the new city of Gela, as well as many other cities of Sicily, came gradually depopulated and lost its importance economic and strategic. Also late third century (270-280 AD), the city and a small country house in the area of \u200b\u200bthe house were destroyed, perhaps by an earthquake.
In the fourth century AD life goes on in that area, but never rebuilt the city that was in the first two centuries of the empire, the town became essentially gas station, so that between 320 and 330 AD, was made a new thermal plant (the one visible today) on the previous age of Augustus and a different orientation. The great city was reduced to a small town, and where there was a small house is built palatial home of the dominus, the famous Villa Romana del Casale.
of the bath remains almost completely intact and clearly legible structure fourth century, which has two entrances, a large lobby, the apoditherium with two pools for the bath, the steam bath, tepidarium, small rooms and frigidarium passing
Around 365 AD an earthquake, recorded at different sites in Sicily, destroyed the country that was almost completely abandoned
At the end of IV - beginning of the fifth century spa facility underwent a Sofiana profound transformation, linked to a resumption of production. He realized the furnaces, and perhaps later even a church with two apses on the environment of the spa. This resurgence of the old settlement lasted until the mid-eighth century, when the Arab conquest marks the final decline, though some walls and some findings suggest a attendance at least until age Frederick and over (among other things, documented by coins of Frederick William II and II).
The spa area has returned a large quantity of finds ceramic facies Castelluccio (Early Bronze Age), the Greek period, but especially the Roman and Byzantine, Arab and Norman. These are mainly oil lamps, incense burners, jugs, vases, plates, rings and pendants in silver and bronze, bronze buckles, bone needles. Among the ceramic materials prevails African red.
In a room adjacent to the spa area was also found a "treasure" of 300 bronze coins minted in between the age of Hadrian and one of Constantius (117 - 361). It seems that the owner, he had kept this little treasure, it has not been able to recover more after an earthquake in 365 AD bronze coins are quite worn, small size and weight, now preserved at the Museum of Gela .
Philosophiana is the neutral plural noun, like other names mentioned stationes Itinerarium Antonini, defining property of a character, perhaps, for the kind of life he led and for his interests, was called "the philosopher "and was the owner of the Villa del Casale.
Zuleima Clare and Alice will be happy to accompany you to the hinterland discovery of unknown angles, through a landscape that will color the memories of a journey not just the usual
[1] State onis, f. place where you are, instead, the home station, stay [2] This is a itinerarium adnotatum, pictum not, therefore without drawings. A register of places and stations located along the Roman roads with the distances in Roman miles. In the form in which we came, the Itinerarium provinciarum Antonini Augusti, also known simply Itinerarium Antonini, seems to be a compilation of age Diocletian, at the end of the third century. AD-early fourth century AD, based primarily on material dating from the reign of Caracalla, the beginning of that century (Anthony named in the title may actually be just Caracalla, whose official name was that of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus).
