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SEGESTA
30km
(19 miles) E of Trapani, 75km (47
miles) SW of Palermo.
A people of mysterious origin called the Elymi were the first
inhabitants of Segesta. These
strange nomads were supposed to be
connected to the Trojans in some
unexplained way. Segesta was the
major city of western Sicily and
because of this it had to face a
continuous confrontation with the
rival power nearby, Selinus. From
the 6th century to the 5th century
B.C., there were near-constant
hostilities. Segesta received the
help of Athens in 415 B.C., but
this ended in disaster and finally
forced the city to turn for help
to Hannibal of Carthage.
Segesta
was overwhelmed and subjugated
twice in the 4th century B.C.,
once by Dionysius and again by
Agathocles. This was a
particularly brutal victor who
tortured, mutilated, or made
slaves of most of the city’s
inhabitants.
Segesta finally turned to
its old ally, Carthage, later just
like many of the other Greek
cities of Sicily, it fell to the
Romans. With all this the main
reason for most tourists to visit
Segesta is to see an incredible
temple out there in a abandoned
field – it is one of the
best-preserved ancient temples in
all Italy
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