Himera

Himera, was a large and important ancient Greek city situated on the north coast of Sicily at the mouth of the river of the same name, between Panormus and Cephaloedium in the comune of Termini Imerese [1]. All authorities agree that Himera was a colony of Zancle, but Thucydides tells us that the emigrants from Zancle mingled with a number of Syracusan exiles, resulting in a city with Chalcidian institutions and a Doric dialect [1]. Archaeology shows that around 580-560 BC the city was completely rebuilt after an unknown event destroyed it [1]. In 409 BC the prosperity of the city was brought to an abrupt end by the great Carthaginian expedition to Sicily [1]. Of the lower city the main visible remains consist of the monumental Tempio della Vittoria, a Doric structure built to commemorate the defeat of the Carthaginians [1].