Heraclea Minoa (modern Eraclea Minoa, Sicily, Italy)
Ancient City
Location
Theatre Type
Earliest Date
320 BCE
GPS Coordinates
Seating Capacity
Dimensions
Cavea Width: 51 meters
Orchestra Width: 17 meters
Summary
Heraclea Minoa (modern Eraclea Minoa, Sicily, Italy. Cavea width: 50.6 meters: ima cavea with 10 rows of seats in 9 cunei; orchestra width: 16.7 meters surrounded by drain and row of seats with continuous backs: no scene building remains but 10 circular holes for possibly supporting wooden stage; capacity: unknown; earliest date ca. 320 BCE.
The Hellenistic Theater of Heraclea Minoa, (Italian: Eraclea Minoa)
What sets the ruins of the theatre at Heraclea Minoa apart from other mid-4th century BCE Hellenistic theatres? Most noticeably: it has a 20th century roof, an oddly elongated orchestra, and, unlike most stone theatres, it is dissolving.
Heraclea (modern Eraclea) Minoa City History
The original city named Minoa was founded in the middle of the 6th century BCE as an outpost of the Greek colony of Selinus (modern Selinunte). The city was well sited on a limestone bluff located on the southwest coast of Sicily, 37 km northwest of Agrigentum (modern Agrigento). At a height of 75 meters above sea level, the location provided a commanding view of the Mediterranean to the South and the cliff provided ample protection from naval incursions.
Sparta occupied the city in 510 BCE and renamed it Heraclea after the demigod Heracles who the Spartan leader, Dorieum claimed as an ancestor and the original founder of the city. From the time of the Spartan occupation, the city was renamed Heraclea, though coupled with that of Minoa to avoid confusion.
The Spartan occupation of the city was short-lived and over the next 400 years, Heraclea Minoa was controlled by Carthaginians, various Greek Sicilian colonies, and finally, Rome. Little is known of the Roman dominion of the city, but it appears to have suffered severely in the First Servile War (134–132 BCE) and soon afterwards it fell into decay. It never recovered and by the end of the 1st century BCE the city was abandoned.
Although the location of the city was identified by the 16th century historian Tommaso Fazello, excavations were not attempted until Professor Ernesto de Miro undertook a large-scale investigation of the ruins which revealed the remains of a small, Hellenistic theatre in 1953.
The theatre, ca 320 BCE
The Heraclea Minoa theatre is placed in the cavity of a small hill, 700 m from the edge of a limestone bluff overlooking the Mediterranean. The theatre faces the sea to the south in defiance of the Vitruvian recommendation which suggests a north-facing view. This orientation is certainly due to the nature of the terrain but it also offers spectators on the back rows a splendid sea view.
Cavea (seating area): The 50.6 m wide cavea (Greek: koilon) or stepped seating is made up of ashlar marlstone (square-cut blocks of limestone). 10 badly-weathered rows remain. The first, bottom row of seats (prohedria) once featured stone backs and arms and were reserved as seats of honor.
The 10 semi-circular rows of seats are divided into nine pie-shaped sectors (cunei or Greek kerkides) by eight small staircases (klimakes). A diazoma (curved walkway) surrounds the uppermost row of seats at a height of 8.9 meters above the orchestra. An additional curved walkway (0.7 m wide) separates the prohedria from the rows of regular stone seats. The seating capacity is unknown.
The cavea is faced at both ends by 3.5-meter-high analemmata (supporting walls) composed of squared blocks of marl. The stone masonry is faced with brick, possibly as a conservation effort at a later date.
Orchestra: The horseshoe-shaped orchestra has a diameter of 16.7 m and considerable depth. No stage or skene (scene house) remains but holes preserved in the earthen orchestra floor suggest a temporary, wooden stage or scene house was once used. A full, 16 meter circular orchestra can easily fit into the elongated space between the first row of seating and the rear of the space reserved for a stage. This elongated, horseshoe-shaped orchestra is unusual for both Greek and Roman theatres.
A 1.5 m wide euripos (water drainage channel) separates the orchestra from the row of prohedria seating. By euripus standards, this is excessively wide and is atypical of other Greek or Roman theatre designs.
The construction of the theatre can be dated to after the second half of the 4th century BCE. The building was abandoned around the 2nd to 1st century BCE, when some structures of the Primo Strato settlement were built on the analemmata.
Ancient Modifications (3rd-2nd Century BCE)
Archaeological evidence indicates renovations to the original theatre structure during its period of use, including a raised stage and wooden scene building dating from the 3rd to 2nd centuries BCE. During this period, architectural changes were also made to features such as the euripus (drainage channel), which was originally constructed of terracotta and later rebuilt in stone (Altair4multimedia).
Degradation of exposed ruins
As previously mentioned, the excavations at Ancient Heraclea are located on a white limestone promontory (Capo Bianco) and are surrounded by a beautiful seascape with high vertical cliffs typical of the shoreline between Heraclea and Agrigento. These natural formations of soft limestone and blinding white marl have been sculped by time, water, and salty breezes into sinuous terraces with smooth surfaces and rounded corners, the most notable being Scala dei Turchi (the Stair of the Turks), which lies 26 km to the south.
The same natural forces that carved the Stair of the Turks have also carved and dissolved the exposed remains of the theatre – it was, after all, constructed from the same material – soft limestone and marl. Or, more precisely, local biocalcarenite cemented by gypsum; and, water dissolves gypsum. Accordingly, when the mid-20th-century excavations removed the centuries of protective earth, the exposed ruins began to dissolve.
First Preservation Attempt (1964)
In 1964, architect Minissi from Viterbo recommended encasing the koilon seating with a colorless, form-fitted plastic shell made from Perspex (a clear plastic sheeting 1 cm thick). This intervention, while intended to protect the structure, created several problems:
- The cover created a greenhouse effect that accelerated erosion
- Mechanical weed control and yearly cleaning of the cover further damaged the stone
- Ultraviolet light turned the clear plastic brown and cloudy, obscuring views of the monument (Whitman.edu)
Reassessment and New Approach (1995)
In 1995, the Superintendent of Preservation authorized the removal of all Perspex cladding and its network of iron support posts. The exposed stonework of the koilon was cleared of vegetation and cleaned. A new design for a protective cover was authorized—one that would shield the monument from rain but whose structure would not further damage the fragile stonework of the theatre.
Current Protective Structure (1999-Present)
In 1999, the recommended preservation work was completed. Workers installed a new fan-shaped roof composed of multiple independent panels of steel-framed fiberglass. A network of Rota-Lock and steel pipe scaffolding supported the roof around the perimeter of the theatre, eliminating the need for internal supports. The finished installation reflects the koilon’s wedge-shaped seating sections (Corriere della Sera).
As of 2019, this remains the current state of the theatre. However, the structure that was intended to be temporary has become permanent, leading to criticism from experts, including Stella Gian Antonio, who in 2014 called for its removal and replacement with a more appropriate protective structure through an international design competition (Corriere della Sera).
Renovations / Excavations
Archaeological Excavations
Pre-Excavation Identification
Prior to formal excavations, the location of Heraclea Minoa was first identified by the 16th-century historian Tommaso Fazello. Although no standing ruins remained visible at that time, the foundations of walls could be traced, and the area contained abundant pottery and brickwork fragments (The Ancient Theatre Archive).
Discovery and Initial Excavations (1950-1953)
The modern archaeological investigation of Heraclea Minoa began in 1950 when archaeologist Ernesto De Miro discovered the site of the theatre, marking the beginning of systematic excavation work (Weekend in Italy). In 1953, formal excavations under De Miro’s supervision revealed the remains of a small Hellenistic theatre dating to approximately 320 BCE. This discovery was significant as it helped establish the cultural and chronological context of the settlement (The Ancient Theatre Archive).
Excavation Campaigns (1953-1964)
A series of archaeological campaigns continued from the initial discovery until 1964, progressively revealing more of the ancient city’s structure. These excavations uncovered the theatre structure, placed in the cavity of a small hill approximately 700 meters from the edge of the limestone bluff overlooking the sea. Excavators also identified parts of the city’s imposing defensive wall system, which extended about 6 kilometers in length, and documented a regular urban layout with the city rising on terraces that slope toward the southwest (Weekend in Italy).
Theatre Architecture Documentation (1966)
By 1966, enough work had been completed on the theatre to allow for detailed academic publication. Ernesto De Miro published a comprehensive study titled “Il teatro di Eraclea Minoa” in the Rendiconti Accademia dei Lincei (Altair4multimedia).
The excavations revealed that the theatre featured:
- A cavea (seating area) with ten rows of steps divided into nine sections (kerkides) by eight staircases
- An orchestra measuring 16.7 meters in width, surrounded by a drain and row of seats with continuous backs
- Evidence of a wooden stage structure, indicated by ten circular holes likely used for supporting wooden stage elements (The Ancient Theatre Archive)
Later Excavations (1970s-1980s)
In the late 1970s, additional survey work was conducted by R.J.A. Wilson and A. Leonard, who published their findings in the Journal of Field Archaeology in 1980. Their work expanded understanding of the broader urban context of the theatre (Wikipedia).
Excavations also revealed two distinct layers of residential structures near the theatre:
- An older Hellenistic layer from the 4th-3rd centuries BCE
- A more recent Roman Republican layer from the 2nd-1st centuries BCE (Valle dei Templi)
Archaeologists found evidence that the stage area was repurposed for residential structures during the 2nd century BCE, suggesting the theatre had fallen out of use by that time (Altair4multimedia).
Bibliography / Resources:
Alaimo, R., et al. “The Conservation Problems of the Theatre of Eraclea Minoa (Sicily).” Eighth International Congress on Deterioration and Conservation of Stone, edited by J. Riederer, Moller Druck und Verlag, 1996, p. 1085.
“Heraclea Minoa.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heraclea_Minoa. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
Stanley-Price, Nicholas, and Jukka Jokilehto. “The Decision to Shelter Archaeological Sites: Three Case-Studies from Sicily.” Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites, vol. 5, no. 1-2, 2002, pp. 19-34.
Stella, Gian Antonio. “Eraclea, the Jewel-Theater Crumbles Prisoner of Steel and Fiberglass.” Corriere della Sera, 17 Mar. 2014.
“The Theater of Eraclea Minoa Is at Risk, Mobilization of the Park Managers.” Giornale di Sicilia, 2 Jan. 2020.
Wilson, R. J. A., and A. Leonard. “Field Survey at Heraclea Minoa (Agrigento), Sicily.” Journal of Field Archaeology, vol. 7, no. 2, 1980, pp. 219-239.