Soluntum
Encyclopedia
Soluntum or Solus was an ancient city of Sicily
, one of the three chief Phoenicia
n settlements in the island
, situated on the north coast, about 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) east of Panormus (modern Palermo
), and immediately to the east of the bold promontory called Capo Zafferano. It lay 183 metres (600 ft) above sea level
, on the southeast side of Monte Catalfano 1225 feet (373 m), in a naturally strong situation, and commanding a fine view. Some scholars contend that Soluntum and Solus were two different cities at close quarters, Soluntum, higher upon the hillside, being a later habitation displacing the earlier settlement of Solus, at a lower elevation. Its current site is at the località
of Solanto in the comune
of Santa Flavia
.
into the hands of the Carthaginians
, or at least became a dependency of that people. It continued steadfast to the Carthaginian alliance even in 397 BCE, when the formidable armament of Dionysius
shook the fidelity of most of their allies; its territory was in consequence ravaged by Dionysius, but without effect. At a later period of the war (396 BCE) it was betrayed into the hands of that despot, but probably soon fell again into the power of the Carthaginians. It was certainly one of the cities that usually formed part of their dominions in the island; and in 307 BCE it was given up by them to the soldiers and mercenaries of Agathocles
, who had made peace with the Carthaginians when abandoned by their leader in Africa. During the First Punic War
we find it still subject to Carthage, and it was not till after the fall of Panormus that Soluntum also opened its gates to the Romans
. It continued to subsist under the Roman dominion as a municipal town
, but apparently one of no great importance, as its name is only slightly and occasionally mentioned by Cicero
. But it is still noticed both by Pliny
and Ptolemy
, where the name is corruptly written ), as well as at a later period by the Itineraries, which place it 12 miles from Panormus and 12 from Thermae (modern Termini Imerese
). Soluntum minted coins in antiquity. It is probable that its complete destruction dates from the time of the Saracens.
The traces of two ancient roads, paved with large blocks of stone, which led up to the city, may still be followed, and the whole summit of Monte Catalfano is covered with fragments of ancient walls and foundations of buildings. Among these may be traced the remains of two temples, of which some capitals and portions of friezes, have been discovered. An archaic oriental Artemis
sitting between a lion
and a panther
, found here, is in the museum
at Palermo, with other antiquities from this site. An inscription, erected by the citizens in honor of Fulvia Plautilla
, the wife of Caracalla
, was found there in 1857. With the exception of the winding road by which the town was approached on the south, the streets, despite the unevenness of the ground, which in places is so steep that steps have to be introduced, are laid out regularly, running from east to west and from north to south, and intersecting at right angles. They are as a rule paved with slabs of stone. The houses were constructed of rough walling, which was afterwards plaster
ed over; the natural rock is often used for the lower part of the walls. One of the largest of them, with a peristyle
, was in 1911, though wrongly, called the gymnasium
. Near the top of the town are some cistern
s cut in the rock, and at the summit is a larger house than usual, with mosaic
pavement
s and painting
s on its walls. Several sepulchres also have been found.
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, one of the three chief Phoenicia
Phoenicia
Phoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
n settlements in the island
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
, situated on the north coast, about 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) east of Panormus (modern Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
), and immediately to the east of the bold promontory called Capo Zafferano. It lay 183 metres (600 ft) above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
, on the southeast side of Monte Catalfano 1225 feet (373 m), in a naturally strong situation, and commanding a fine view. Some scholars contend that Soluntum and Solus were two different cities at close quarters, Soluntum, higher upon the hillside, being a later habitation displacing the earlier settlement of Solus, at a lower elevation. Its current site is at the località
Località
A località, in Italy, is the name given to inhabited places that are not accorded a more significant distinction in administrative law such as a frazione, comune, municipio, circoscrizione, or quartiere. The word is cognate to English locality...
of Solanto in the comune
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
of Santa Flavia
Santa Flavia
Santa Flavia is a town in the province of Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy.-Overview:The town is situated between the Gulf of Palermo and the town and hot springs known as Termini Imerese, on the Tyrrhenian Sea, 15 km east of Palermo...
.
History
The date of its first occupation is, like that of Panormus (Palermo), unknown. From its proximity to Panormus, Soluntum was one of the few colonies that the Phoenicians retained when they gave way before the advance of the Greek colonies in Sicily, and withdrew to the northwest corner of the island. It then passed together with Panormus and MotyaMotya
Motya , was an ancient and powerful city on an island off the west coast of Sicily, between Drepanum and Lilybaeum...
into the hands of the Carthaginians
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
, or at least became a dependency of that people. It continued steadfast to the Carthaginian alliance even in 397 BCE, when the formidable armament of Dionysius
Dionysius I of Syracuse
Dionysius I or Dionysius the Elder was a Greek tyrant of Syracuse, in what is now Sicily, southern Italy. He conquered several cities in Sicily and southern Italy, opposed Carthage's influence in Sicily and made Syracuse the most powerful of the Western Greek colonies...
shook the fidelity of most of their allies; its territory was in consequence ravaged by Dionysius, but without effect. At a later period of the war (396 BCE) it was betrayed into the hands of that despot, but probably soon fell again into the power of the Carthaginians. It was certainly one of the cities that usually formed part of their dominions in the island; and in 307 BCE it was given up by them to the soldiers and mercenaries of Agathocles
Agathocles
Agathocles , , was tyrant of Syracuse and king of Sicily .-Biography:...
, who had made peace with the Carthaginians when abandoned by their leader in Africa. During the First Punic War
First Punic War
The First Punic War was the first of three wars fought between Ancient Carthage and the Roman Republic. For 23 years, the two powers struggled for supremacy in the western Mediterranean Sea, primarily on the Mediterranean island of Sicily and its surrounding waters but also to a lesser extent in...
we find it still subject to Carthage, and it was not till after the fall of Panormus that Soluntum also opened its gates to the Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
. It continued to subsist under the Roman dominion as a municipal town
Municipium
Municipium , the prototype of English municipality, was the Latin term for a town or city. Etymologically the municipium was a social contract between municipes, the "duty holders," or citizens of the town. The duties, or munera, were a communal obligation assumed by the municipes in exchange for...
, but apparently one of no great importance, as its name is only slightly and occasionally mentioned by Cicero
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
. But it is still noticed both by Pliny
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
and Ptolemy
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
, where the name is corruptly written ), as well as at a later period by the Itineraries, which place it 12 miles from Panormus and 12 from Thermae (modern Termini Imerese
Termini Imerese
Termini Imerese is a town and comune in the province of Palermo on the northern coast of Sicily, southern Italy.-Ancient:The site where the town now sits has been populated since prehistoric times, as many archeologial excavations have shown through the years...
). Soluntum minted coins in antiquity. It is probable that its complete destruction dates from the time of the Saracens.
Excavations and remains
Excavations have brought to light considerable remains of the ancient town, belonging entirely to the Roman period, and a good deal still remains unexplored.The traces of two ancient roads, paved with large blocks of stone, which led up to the city, may still be followed, and the whole summit of Monte Catalfano is covered with fragments of ancient walls and foundations of buildings. Among these may be traced the remains of two temples, of which some capitals and portions of friezes, have been discovered. An archaic oriental Artemis
Artemis
Artemis was one of the most widely venerated of the Ancient Greek deities. Her Roman equivalent is Diana. Some scholars believe that the name and indeed the goddess herself was originally pre-Greek. Homer refers to her as Artemis Agrotera, Potnia Theron: "Artemis of the wildland, Mistress of Animals"...
sitting between a lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
and a panther
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
, found here, is in the museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
at Palermo, with other antiquities from this site. An inscription, erected by the citizens in honor of Fulvia Plautilla
Fulvia Plautilla
Publia Fulvia Plautilla, Fulvia Plautilla or Plautilla was a Roman Princess, briefly Roman Empress and the only wife to Roman Emperor Caracalla. Caracalla was her paternal second cousin.-Birth and family:...
, the wife of Caracalla
Caracalla
Caracalla , was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. The eldest son of Septimius Severus, he ruled jointly with his younger brother Geta until he murdered the latter in 211...
, was found there in 1857. With the exception of the winding road by which the town was approached on the south, the streets, despite the unevenness of the ground, which in places is so steep that steps have to be introduced, are laid out regularly, running from east to west and from north to south, and intersecting at right angles. They are as a rule paved with slabs of stone. The houses were constructed of rough walling, which was afterwards plaster
Plaster
Plaster is a building material used for coating walls and ceilings. Plaster starts as a dry powder similar to mortar or cement and like those materials it is mixed with water to form a paste which liberates heat and then hardens. Unlike mortar and cement, plaster remains quite soft after setting,...
ed over; the natural rock is often used for the lower part of the walls. One of the largest of them, with a peristyle
Peristyle
In Hellenistic Greek and Roman architecture a peristyle is a columned porch or open colonnade in a building surrounding a court that may contain an internal garden. Tetrastoon is another name for this feature...
, was in 1911, though wrongly, called the gymnasium
Gymnasium (ancient Greece)
The gymnasium in ancient Greece functioned as a training facility for competitors in public games. It was also a place for socializing and engaging in intellectual pursuits. The name comes from the Ancient Greek term gymnós meaning "naked". Athletes competed in the nude, a practice said to...
. Near the top of the town are some cistern
Cistern
A cistern is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. Cisterns are distinguished from wells by their waterproof linings...
s cut in the rock, and at the summit is a larger house than usual, with mosaic
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
pavement
Pavement (architecture)
A pavement in architecture is a stone or tile structure, the pavement, which can serve as a floor or an external feature. Pavements can be made of flagstones which are used for things like paving gardens, tiles also there were mosaics which were commonly used by the Romans.When along the side of...
s and painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
s on its walls. Several sepulchres also have been found.