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ERICE
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| Erice (Italian
pronunciation: [??rit?e], Sicilian: Èrici) is a historic
town and comune in the province of Trapani in Sicily, Italy. |
| Erice is
located on top of Mount Erice, at around 750m above sea level,
overlooking the city of Trapani, the low western coast towards
Marsala, the dramatic Punta del Saraceno and Capo san Vito
to the north-east, and the Aegadian Islands on Sicily's north-western
coast, providing spectacular views. |
| The ancient name of Erice was Eryx, and its
foundation was associated with the eponymous Greek hero Eryx.
It was not a Greek colony, but was largely Hellenized. It
was destroyed in the First Punic War by the Carthaginians,
and from then on declined in importance. |
| MAIN SIGHTS |
| In the northeastern portion of the city there
are the remains of ancient Elymian and Phoenician walls indicating
different stages of settlement and occupation in antiquity. |
| There are two castles that remain in the city:
Pepoli Castle, which dates from Saracen times, and the Venus
Castle, dating from the Norman period, built on top of the
ancient Temple of Venus, where Venus Ericina was worshipped.
According to legend, the temple was founded by Aeneas. It
was well-known throughout the Mediterranean area in the ancient
age, and an important cult was celebrated in it. In his book
On the Nature of Animals, Aelian writes that animals chosen
for sacrifice would voluntarily walk up to the altar to be
killed. |
| A cable car (funivia) runs from the outskirts
of Trapani to the town of Erice. The cablecar closed is from
mid January to mid March. |
| CULTURE |
| Erice hosts important scientific meetings at
the Ettore Majorana center, organised by the controversial
astrophysicist Antonino Zichichi. |
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| Fonte wikipedia |
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