Syracuse, Sicily

Greetings friends!

Another summer, another history-filled holiday, this time for me (Floris). I spent two weeks in Sicily, and was absolutely overwhelmed by its rich history. So I’ll gladly share some of my experience here with you.

Sicily was colonized by the Greeks in the 8th century BC already, and from there on many different settlements sprung up over the ages. By far the greatest of these, was Syracuse. At its peak – between the fifth and third century BC (before the Punic wars) – it is estimated that Syracuse had a population of somewhere between 200.000 and 300.000 inhabitants, compared to 125.000 nowadays. It was said, that the city was comparable in size and splendour to Athens itself!

In ancient sources the city is described as being made up of 4 or 5 different towns or districts, but so close to each other that it was – and is – considered a single city. One of these towns was named Neapolis (Greek for new city/community), named so because it was the last to be built. And this town is now the current spot of the Syracuse Archaelogical Park. Here you can still see the remains of one the largest theatres in the ancient world (with a capacity for 15.000 people), a large amphitheatre, the surviving plateau of a 200-meter long (!) temple, but also a stone quarry.

Somewhat to my own surprise, the quarry – or latomie in latin – was actually one of the most fascinating sites for me. In this place thousands of slaves were put to work to quarry limestone blocks, used for the construction of temples, palaces and defenses of the city, amongst others. Today the quarry looks mostly like a recessed botanical garden, with some dug out caves in the side of the cliffs around the edges of the park. But in ancient times this entire ‘garden’ was part of a complex labyrinth of mining corridors, so was actually completely roofed and invisible from the ground level – besides the entrance. It is because of earthquakes that all the central corridors have collapsed and since been covered by greenery. At the edges of the quarry you can still see the remains of some corridors, and the exact pattern in which the blocks of stone have been cut out of the rock wall and ceiling. It was in the secrecy of these caves that apostle Paul is said to have spoken to the people of Syracuse, while on his way to Rome.

So many other stories can be told about this quarry, Syracuse and the entirety of Sicily in ancient times. This island alone would provide enough topics to dedicate an entire YouTube-channel to I feel; from exploring the many archaeological sites to telling the story of the Greek period, the Punic wars and the Roman period – all of these could make for very compelling documentaries, and I would certainly love to return prepared and with a mission in the future. Let us know if there’s a specific interest you have in this island, and we will definitely take it into consideration!


ps. a new big documentary will be launched soon again on YouTube, we’re just looking for a sponsor to finish it up