Akrillai

South-east Sicily and the Greek cities in red and the Native settlements in blue. The Via Selinuntina in yellow and the Via Elorina in green.

Akrillai (Ἄκριλλαι in Greek and Acrillae in Latin) was an ancient Greek colony located in the modern province of Ragusa where the Sicilian town of Chiaramonte Gulfi stands today. The ruins of the old colony can be found in the contrada Piano del Conte-Morana and Piano Grillo. A necropolis dating from the 6th-5th century BC has been identified in the contrada Paraspola-Pirruna.

The name appears in different forms among different authors: Akrilla, Akrille; in ancient sources: Akrillaiu; the name is variously written by Latin writers Acrilla and Acrille.

History

Hellenic era

The city was founded by the Corinthian and Syracusan colonists at the same time of Kamarina (598 B.C.), overlooking the Valley of the Hipparis to establish their power against the city of Gela, founded by a Cretan-Rhodian effort. Akrillai was also a road-station on the route from Syracuse to Gela and Akragas. By passing via Akrai and Kasmenai, the road avoided the low Hyblaean Mountains and Hybla Heraea.

The city based its economy on trade, thanks to its strategic position along the Via Selinuntina. Near to Akrillai was the Hellenistic settlement of Scornavacche, where recent excavations have found several clay ovens. Throughout its existence Akrillai remained under the influence of the mother-city Syracuse, with which it was allied. According to the Roman historian Titus Livius, the city was used as a fortress and military base during the Carthaginians' second Sicilian campaign. In 406 BC, after the fall of Akragas and Gela, the city was destroyed for the first time, as the Carthaginians passed on their way to attack and besiege Syracuse.

Roman Acrillae

Titus Livius also recounts^[1]^[2] the battle fought at Akrillai in 213 BC between Syracusan forces guided by the strategos Hippokrates, and the Roman army led by the consul Marcus Claudius Marcellus:

One night in 213 BC, whilst the city of Syracuse was under siege by the Romans, the Syracusan army managed to find an unguarded passage between the Roman lines. Epicides, brother of Hippokrates, was left to guard the city, whilst his brother took the army to Akrillai and prepared to counter attack the Romans. The consul Marcello, marching towards Akrillai from Akragas, arrived at the colony to find the Syracusan army busy establishing their camp. The consul, strong from months of preparation against the Carthaginians, ordered the attack and the Syracusan army, disorientated and unarmed, was divided from its cavalry and commanders. Powerless in this situation, Hippokrates was forced to take refuge in Akrai.

With the defeat of Hippokrates’ Syracusans, the city of Akrillai became part of the Roman province of Sicily, its name Latinized as Acrillae.^[3]

Arab Gulfi

In 827 AD the town was destroyed again, this time by the Arabs of Asad ibn al-Furat. The name Acrillae disappeared and the rebuilt centre was known by the Arab name of Gulfi, which means "the rose-garden" and "place rich with vegetation". The nearby river Dirillo also takes its name from Acrillae: called Achates (agate) during the Greek-Roman era and said to be where agates were first found,^[4]^[5]^[6] in Arab times the river was called Wadi Ikrilu (River of Acrille).

Excavations

Akrillai was discovered by the historian, the Baron Corrado Melfi and identified by the archaeologist Antonio Di Vita, an academic of the Lincei, who conducted several campaigns of excavation. The many findings are housed in the Hyblean Archaeological Museum of Ragusa and in the Regional Archeological Museum of Syracuse.

Notes

↑ thelatinlibrary.com Livy, Book XXIV, 35-36 in Latin.
↑ Livy, Book XXIV, 24.35-24.36
↑ Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854), ed. William Smith, LLD (20.68)
↑ Theophrastus, On Stones
↑ Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Book XXXVII Chapter 54, at the Perseus Project
↑ The Chambers Dictionary (2001) Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers. P.27

This article includes material from its counterpart in the Italian-language Wikipedia « it:Akrillai » , specifically from this version.

Coordinates: 37°02′N 14°41′E / 37.033°N 14.683°E / 37.033; 14.683

Magna Graecia

South Italy	Alision Brentesion Caulonia Chone Croton Cumae Heraclea Lucania Hydrus Krimisa Laüs Locri Medma Metapontum Neápolis Pandosia (Lucania) Poseidonia Pixous Rhegion Scylletium Siris Sybaris Sybaris on the Traeis Taras Terina Thurii Velia

Sicily	Akragas Akrai Akrillai Apollonia Casmene Caronia Catania Enna Gela Helorus Heraclea Minoa Himera Hybla Gereatis Hybla Heraea Kamarina Leontinoi Megara Hyblaea Messina Naxos Segesta Selinunte Syracuse Tauromenium Thermae Tindari

Aeolian Islands	Filicudi Meligunis Panarea Salina Stromboli

Archaeological sites in Sicily

Province of Agrigento	Heraclea Minoa Akragas Valle dei Templi - Temple of Concordia - Temple of Heracles - Temple of Juno - Temple of Olympian Zeus

Province of Caltanissetta	Gela

Province of Catania	Aetna (city) Katáne Palike Sant'ippolito caltagirone

Province of Enna	Centuripe Morgantina Villa Romana del Casale

Province of Messina	Abacaenum Halaesa Naxos Ancient theatre of Taormina Tindari Villa Romana di Patti

Province of Palermo	Entella Grotta dell'Addaura Hippana Ietas Himera Pirama Soluntum

Province of Ragusa	Akrillai Hybla Heraea Kamarina Kaukana

Province of Syracuse	Akrai Santoni Casmenae Cava del Rivettazzo Colonne di San Basilio Helorus Netum Megara Hyblaea Syrakousai Ear of Dionysius Galermi Aqueduct Greek Theatre of Syracuse Grotta del Ninfeo Temple of Athena Temple of Apollo Necropolis of Cassibile Necropolis of Pantalica Thapsos Villa Romana del Tellaro

Province of Trapani	Eryx/Erice Drepanum Halyciae Grotta del Genovese Monte Polizzo Motya Segesta Selinunte Temple C Temple E Temple F Cave di Cusa

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