From the Greek στενωποί (stenōpói), the stenopoi were minor roads running north to south. In the Hippodamus urban plan, they intersected the main streets perpendicularly to create regular quadrangular blocks....

In the 5th century BC Hippodamus of Miletus, a famous Greek urban planner and architect, was the first to theorise the rational arrangement of road axes with orthogonal crossings in the urban planning of Greek cities. His canons were inspired by mathematical and physical criteria, but also by soci...

Hiero II, king of Syracuse from 270 to 216 BC, was born in Syracuse around 300 BC to a family of humble origins. In the battles against the Carthaginians he came to be recognised for his honour and courage, so much so that he was appointed strategist in 275. During his reign he adopted a policy ...

In ancient Rome, pietas indicated a feeling of deep devotion and respect towards parents, country and the gods....

Quaestors were minor magistrates of ancient Rome. They had administrative powers of supervision and management over finance and the treasury. To take up office, it was necessary to be 28 years old for patricians and 30 for plebeians. The quaestors’ service could take place in Rome or be loca...

Praetors were originally two magistrates working in Rome with judicial functions mainly in civil matters. With the expansion of Roman rule there was a need, for the first time in 227 BC, to appoint two others to the administration of Sicily and Sardinia. The Roman provinces over which they had j...

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 w...

Lilybaeum, in the archaeological area of Capo Boéo in Marsala, was an important city in Sicily that was fundamental under Roman rule. According to Diodorus it was founded in 397 BC by exiles who had fled from Motya – an island opposite the coast inhabited by Punic traders – after Dionysius of ...

In Verrem is the work written by Cicero in 70 BC against Gaius Verres, governor of Sicily from 73 to 71 BC, accused of extortion. Called into question by the Sicilians themselves, who were tired of the abuse and suppression of the praetor, the orator maximus, with only his first two speeches, featu...

Gaius Verres was born around 115 BC to an aristocratic family, probably of Etruscan origin. His cursus honorum (course of honour) began in 84 BC in Cisalpine Gaul, where he held the office of quaestor. From his first assignment he was accused of appropriating public money, but this did not prevent...