Temple of Dioscuri
The Temple of Castor and Pollux, or Temple of Dioscuri, as it is known in Italian, stood in the southern part of a vast complex of sacred areas, known as the Sanctuary of Chthonic Deities.
It’s current appearance is the result of a reconstruction carried out by the Sicilian Antiquities Commission which took place between 1836 and 1852, which used parts of buildings from different periods.
To this day the name of the temple is considered a conventional title: from the early days of the excavations, its association with the two argonauts was immediately questioned. Among the first to raise doubts on this attribution was the provincial architect Saverio Bentivegna, who reported to the Girgenti Prefect that the floor that had been unearthed by the digs did not belong to a temple, but was instead “part of some other public building, and possibly a forum” [Complesso archivistico: Prefettura di Agrigento, Intendenza e atti della Prefettura di Girgenti 1827-1887 b. 482 14] seeing as, with reference to a saying by Cicero, “not far from the Temple of Jupiter Olympian there was the forum”. In another account of the works performed on the temple of Jupiter, Bentivegna suggested that the capitals and the column shafts that had been recovered beneath the floors of the building effectively belonged to the Temple of Castor and Pollux.
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To this day the name of the temple is considered a conventional title: from the early days of the excavations, its association with the two argonauts was immediately questioned. Among the first to raise doubts on this attribution was the provincial architect Saverio Bentivegna, who reported to the Girgenti Prefect that the floor that had been unearthed by the digs did not belong to a temple, but was instead “part of some other public building, and possibly a forum” [Complesso archivistico: Prefettura di Agrigento, Intendenza e atti della Prefettura di Girgenti 1827-1887 b. 482 14] seeing as, with reference to a saying by Cicero, “not far from the Temple of Jupiter Olympian there was the forum”. In another account of the works performed on the temple of Jupiter, Bentivegna suggested that the capitals and the column shafts that had been recovered beneath the floors of the building effectively belonged to the Temple of Castor and Pollux.
Image gallery
The other points of interest in the same route
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Pietro Griffo Regional Museum of Archaeology
In 1867 a vase was recovered and delivered to the Municipal Museum of Girgenti.
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Temple of Demeter
The growing fascination for classical antiquities fuelled the illicit trafficking of historical relics, which were sold to private collectors or even to the king on payment of a reward.
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Temple of Hercules
In 1834 the Antiquities and Fine Arts Commission of Palermo undertook the first restoration works on the Temple of Hercules, also known as the Temple of Heracles.
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Temple of Jupiter
The Temple of Jupiter, or Temple of Zeus, is an important example of the different approaches that have been applied over the years towards Agrigento’s archaeological site.
