Historical Sicily #1: Teatro Greco

I recently made a quick stop in Sicily, which is south of Italy and on the slopes of Mount Etna. It’s well known that Rome has most of Italy’s history, then Florence. Somewhere down that list is little Sicily, but it doesn’t get as much recognition for its history as it deserves! So I will do a few blog posts over the coming days so you can get a proper idea of this lovely place:

This first post is on the “Teatro Greco”, which is in the town of Taormina (there is a second one in Siracusa). Sadly the weather was awful as you can tell by these photos, but hopefully it will still show some of its beauty:

At first, I was totally confused as to why it’s called the “Greek” theatre. Surely it’s the Roman theatre? Has someone made a dreadful mistake?!

  

I was promptly informed that the Greeks were actually very prominent in Italy BEFORE the Romans. You learn something new everyday....even with history!

The theatre itself is built on the Greek foundations of what was likely a theatre beforehand, but the bricks are Roman. The theatre is recorded as having been built in the 7^th Century B.C. As you can see it’s not in great shape, but it still has a beautiful feel about it, as Mount Etna looms behind it.

It’s worth noting that the volcano regularly erupts, but the fact the theatre is still there shows that the town is relatively safe! You can see the smoke from the volcano around it on a clear day:

On my last day in Sicily - not very lucky!

Most of the original seats have not survived, but they have set up modern ones instead as there are still concerts and events held here. (Blue and James Blunt are the latest)

The theatre is accessible from all the way around, meaning that you get the wonderful views:

On the left hand side, there is a little Museum, with some of the inscriptions they found throughout the theatre:

This included financial recordings and other inscriptions (although how they could tell from this, I don’t know):

The main attraction is definitely the views. It cost us about €4, which was worth it in my opinion, as there aren’t many places accessible this high up….

Higher up on the hill there was an inaccessible medieval fortress, which a nearby tour guide was explaining. So close but yet so far! (Again, sorry about the weather quality):

I decided to do this post on the theatre first as it’s the most historical and memorable feature in Taormina in my opinion. However, there is lots more to come as it is the most wonderful town, and is also the place where DH Lawrence wrote Lady Chatterley’s Lover. So keep your eyes open...