Himera

The next day, Himera awaited us with this sign near the parking lot where our bus stopped. Looks like the mafia is still active in some regions ...

The museum showed us the true colours of ancient temples: Yellow, blue and red among the white of the marble stone. Only time and weather washed them off and gave us the impression of a "white" Greco-Roman antiquity.

The battles of Himera 480 and 409 BC against the Carthaginians mark an important if neglected point in European history because the local leaders managed to repel the invaders; yet the losses were heavy and even the corpses of horses were found on-site.

The decorative head of a ram made with ceramics was a surprising find in the museum.

Byzantine art was also found here; It tried to imitate the ancient models yet looks more simple ... in the turmoil of late antiquity, many arts and sciences were lost and had to be recovered if not rediscovered.

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