Draft:Sacred area of the Kothon, Motya

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Sacred pool of Baal
Aerial view image showing a rectangular pool
Aerial view of the sacred pool of Baal
Interactive map of Sacred pool of Baal
37°51′53″N 12°27′57″E / 37.86472°N 12.46583°E / 37.86472; 12.46583
LocationMotya (San Pantaleo island), off the coast of Sicily, Italy
History
Founded9th century BC
Built forCultic, part of a monumental religious complex
DemolishedDestroyed in 550 BC by Punic general Malco, and in 396 BC by Dionysius the Elder, the Despot of Syracuse
RebuiltSecond half of the 6th century BC after its destruction by the Carthaginians
Site notes
Architectural style
Phoenician
Governing bodySuperintendence for Cultural and Environmental Heritage of Trapani

Historical background

Its trade network spanned Central and Western Mediterranean, resulting in conflict with Carthage. The Carthaginians, led by general Malco, attacked and sacked the island in 550 BC.[1] The city was rebuilt shortly after, complete with a massive city wall which, according to Nigro, was “one of the earliest such structures in the Central Mediterranean”.[2][3] The renewed status of the city was exemplified by the construction of monumental religious areas at the north and south sides of the island.[4]

Decline (MERGE WITH PREVIOUS)

In 397–396 BC, the Greek despot of Syracuse Dionysius the Elder destroyed the Phoenician colony in an epic siege, leaving the island completely ruined and effectually uninhabited.[5] From the third century BCE until the seventh century CE, the sacred pool was spoliated and used as a salt evaporation pond.[6]


Architecture and description


it comprised, around the sacred pool, three main temples, and various other cultic constructions and installations. At the center of the pool stood a larger than life-sized statue of the foremost Phoenician deity, the god Baal. The pool's architecture and layout also suggested a sacred astronomical function.[7][8]


37 m × 52.5 m (121 ft × 172 ft) stone-lined rectangular structure rectangular, made from massive ashlar blocks.[8]

Function

Reinterpretation of the function of the basin

The Italian mission's most recent excavation campaigns, undertaken between 2002 and 2020, focused on the southern part of the island, particularly the large water basin.[8] These uncovered fresh evidence allowing a full reinterpretation of the function of the construction as a sacred pool of great religious importance.[9] The pool held at its center, a statue of Baal, and it may have been used for ritual ablutions.[10]

A circular temenos, discovered in 2009 confirmed the central location of the pool.[9] The temenos was 0.7 to 1.5 m (2.3 to 4.9 ft) wide and 3 m (9.8 ft) high.[11] Within the temenos, and around the pool stood three structures: a temple dedicated to the foremost Phoenician god Baal, another to his consort Astarte, and a third building located on the western side of the complex. The latter was labeled the "Sanctuary of the Holy Waters" by Lorenzo Nigro and his team, because of the cult-related and hydraulic facilities it contained.[10][11]



discovery of multiple temples surrounding the pool, and of

Further excavations between 2009

and 2021 revealed the temenos wall, 0.7–1.5m wide and 3m high, which encloses the ‘Kothon’

and the Temple of Ba’al within a circular, 118m-diameter area (Nigro 2018: 262–68, 2019a:

1650–52)

that occupied a central location within a massive religious sanctuary.

Dating

The religious complex dates back to 550 BC, and remained in use until the island's destruction in 396 BC.[8]

How the date was known, how it was confirmed


an archaeo - astro nomical reconstruction of the sky at the time the temple was rebuilt, circa. 550 BC[12]



Location






Artifacts and finds

.

Notes

Citations

  1. Nigro 2022, p. 1. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFNigro2022 (help)
  2. Nigro 2019a.
  3. Nigro 2020, pp. 1–2.
  4. Nigro 2022, p. 3. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFNigro2022 (help)
  5. Isserlin et al. 1958, p. 1.
  6. Nigro 2022, p. 2. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFNigro2022 (help)
  7. Nigro 2012, p. 381–383.
  8. Nigro 2022, p. 4. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFNigro2022 (help)
  9. Nigro 2022, p. 5–6. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFNigro2022 (help)
  10. Nigro 2021, p. 149.
  11. Nigro 2022, p. 5. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFNigro2022 (help)
  12. Nigro 2022, p. 11. sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFNigro2022 (help)

References

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Further reading