Among the ancient Greeks, Heracles – Hercules for the Romans – was considered a hero and symbol of strength and courage. His temple in Agrigento was the oldest in the city, built in the 6th century BC, one of the first in Akragas.
Inside the cella (shrine) there was a bronze statue of the god which, as Cicero specifies in his In Verrem, as well as being of extraordinary beauty, was ruined around the chin and mouth because of the kisses that worshippers left as a sign of veneration.
