3rd Weekend trip: Part 1

(June 14) This trip was an overnighter, so we covered a lot of areas. Ultimate destination was Agrigento (where the Valley of the Temples is). Our first stop was an archaeological site, Morgantina. They actually excavate on Saturdays, so we got to meet the director and see them at work...least to say, that actually made me very sad and upset as they were doing things that I came there to learn...yeah.
Morgantina has a long occupation period, starting with some settlements from the Early Bronze Age (in southern Italy, this was around 1800-1000 BCE, after which was an Iron Age settlement) due to its location in one of the highest points in the area and easily defended. This site is also unique in that it is being excavated by an American team, which there are very few of around Sicily. After occupation by earlier people, of course influence from other regions spread into the area. The region was Hellenised (Greek influence), and this site is now one of the best examples of Hellenised native cities in Sicily. Ok, yeah, I bought a guidebook for this place (which also covered Piazza Armerina and The Roman Villa of Casale, upcoming post) since my guidebook didn't have that much on these sites. Along with seeing the ongoing excavation, we visited the main site and meet up with Dr. Malcolm Bell, who has been in charge of this project since 1978. He talked about the history of the excavated area for a while, and gave us a mini tour of the site.

After Morgantina, we visited Caltagirone. This city is well known for its production of pottery and terra-cotta wares. A wide variety of pottery shops can be found here. We ate lunch here, after which we climbed to the top of the Staircase of Santa Maria del Monte which is one of the main sites in this city besides the pottery shops. We shopped for a little while before leaving again to visit the Valley of the Temples.

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