Archaeological area of Capo Colonna: the ancient "Lakinion akron".
The archaeological area of Capo Colonna, known in antiquity as "Lakinion akron" is a state archaeological site located in Capo Colonna, near Crotone, reachable by a coastal road from the capital. It is included in the list of national monuments.
At Capo Colonna stood one of the most important sacred areas of the entire Mediterranean basin: the sanctuary dedicated to Hera Lacinia, wife and sister of Zeus.
Crotone, ancient and powerful Achaean colony of the sixth century BC, was the seat of the Pythagorean philosophical school, the medical school - considered the best in the ancient world.
The finds discovered in the excavation area are kept, in part, in the National Archaeological Museum of Crotone. In particular, there are archaic finds and the precious Treasure of Hera Lacinia. From the sanctuary are exposed votive objects, fragments of architectural decorations in marble and terracotta, and fragments of sculptures, all dating back to the Archaic Age; the inscribed stone that recalls the membership of the sanctuary to Hera Eleytheria; the sculptural group of the Roman age of Eros and Psyche found in the sea at Capo Colonna.
Outside the sanctuary there are also several domestic environments, probably the accommodation of priests, a Roman villa and a balneum spa, both dating from the third century AD.
The large amount of artifacts found are divided between the various museums of the city of Crotone. The most recent ones in the already mentioned new Archaeological Museum of Capo Colonna, while something dating back to precolonial times is exhibited in the Antiquarium of Torre Nao, also inside the Archaeological Park.
History
The sanctuary of Hera Lacinia of Capo Colonna, dependent on the city of ancient Crotone, was one of the most important sanctuaries of Magna Graecia from the archaic age until the fourth century BC, until it was the seat of the Italiota league before it moved to Taranto.
The site of the sanctuary was in a strategic position along the coastal routes that joined Taranto to the Strait of Messina, on a promontory called Lacinion in ancient times, which also gave the epithet to the goddess venerated, Hera Lacinia. Today's name instead recalls the ruins of the temple (with the last "column" standing), while the name used until modern times, "Capo Nao", is nothing but a contraction of the Greek naos, which means temple.
The sanctuary was built at the end of the sixth century BC and was also called Hera Eleytheria, as remains testified by an inscription on the cippus of Lacinion, at the National Archaeological Museum of Crotone.
Between the sixteenth and nineteenth century was almost completely looted to reuse the construction materials, first of the Castle of Charles V and the defensive walls of the city, and then for the construction of the port.
Description
The complex was composed of several buildings, of which are now visible some remains. The temple itself, the Doric order, with six columns on the facade (hexastyle), was leaning towards the sea and had the classic shape of the Greek temples: a massive complex of forty-eight columns [no source] in Doric style over 8 meters high and consisting of eight fluted rocchi. The roof was made of marble slabs and tiles in Parian marble. Nothing is known of the decorations that, however, were certainly present, as can be deduced from the discovery of a female head in marble from Greece and a few other fragments. The column, in Doric style, until 1638 was flanked by another fallen for an earthquake and rests on the few remains of the mighty stylobate.
In the vicinity is traced a "Via Sacra" of about sixty meters and over 8 meters wide.
- Al complesso del tempio appartengono anche almeno tre altri edifici chiamati "Edificio B", "Edificio H", "Edificio K":
- l'Edificio B, che presenta una pianta rettangolare, è ritenuto poter essere il tempio originario. Questa tesi è sostenuta dal ritrovamento di reperti che sarebbero datati già dall'VIII secolo a.C.;
- l'Edificio H, di pianta quadrata, chiamato anche Hestiatorion, è suddiviso in vari locali. Il ritrovamento di suppellettili tipiche dei locali dedicati ai pasti può far dedurre che si trattasse dell'edificio-mensa e ristoro dei viaggiatori oltre che dei sacerdoti. In ogni caso la datazione di questo "Edificio H" viene posta al IV secolo a.C. quando il tempio già aveva assunto grande celebrità.
- l'Edificio K, o Katagogion, risale anch'esso al IV secolo a.C., presenta una pianta a "elle" e ne rimangono solo i basamenti. Si presume trattarsi di un loggiato di colonne, sempre in stile dorico, che univa una serie di locali e un cortile. Probabilmente era la foresteria dove potevano trovare alloggio importanti visitatori, mentre i loro accompagnatori si dovevano accontentare di costruzioni molto meno raffinate e resistenti.
Gli scavi hanno riscoperto una parte delle decorazioni architettoniche originali, in marmo greco e databili a una fase di costruzione del V secolo a.C., che oggi si trovano a Crotone. Nel capoluogo si trovano anche i resti della copertura in marmo pario, successiva alla vittoria di Crotone su Sibari, e delle offerte votive, spesso con iscrizioni.
Nella parte settentrionale dell'area archeologica sono presenti parti di un insediamento di epoca romana, identificato con la colonia di Croto, dedotta nel 194 a.C., e numerosi altri fabbricati, tra cui tre ville baronali settecentesche, una piccola chiesa intitolata alla Madonna di Capo Colonna, con un ampio sagrato, su cui si affaccia la Torre Nao, fortificazione del XVI secolo.
contact
TELEPONE+39 0962934814
MAIL: pm-cal.capocolonna@beniculturali.it
Golden diadem of Hera Lacinia, found in the Archaeological Park of Capo Colonna and kept today in the Archaeological Museum of Crotone.
