Foro Siracusano, Archaeological site in Syracuse, Italy.
Foro Siracusano is an archaeological site in Syracuse containing remains from the Roman era, including three marble columns from a covered walkway and original limestone paving. The ground shows foundations of buildings and monuments that once defined this significant public space.
The area became Syracuse's agora in the Greek period, perhaps through the will of Gelon, as the junction between the island of Ortygia and the Acradina district. It kept this public function under Roman rule, when the forum gained further public buildings; Cicero, writing of 70 BC, records porticoes, the bouleuterion, the prytaneion and a great temple to Zeus Olympios.
The name "villini" comes from the public garden created here in 1910 by architect Luigi Mauceri. From 1907 the garden's ground hosted Syracuse's first football matches, played by Ortigia Sport Club against local teams and foreign sailors from the nearby port.
The site is located near a modern public garden and is freely accessible during daylight hours, making it easy to explore the archaeological remains. Wear sturdy shoes since the ground is uneven and portions of the ancient pavement are exposed.
A street section in the southern portion preserves original paving that remained in use across multiple centuries from early times through the medieval period. This stretch of road shows in a rare way how successive generations used and walked the same stone surface.
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