Selinunte - Eastern Group of Temples

Scientists have labeled each temple with a letter of the alphabet, as in most cases it is not quite certain to which god or goddess they are dedicated. As architectural accomplishments and because of the carvings on the frieze panels - which are now safely housed in the Archeological Museum of Palermo - they make an important contribution to the documentation of Greek art of the Archaic and Classical periods.

In the wake of the creation of a Parco Nazionale di Selinunte - Castelvetrano an embankment has recently been built to keep cars and coaches away from the temple complex and restrict them to the road and vehicle park. Beyond the entrance the visitor will find the eastern group of temples, three of which lie parallel to one another. People have asked why the inhabitants of Selinunte saw fit to erect a second group of temples to a divine trinity close to the town and near to the shrines of the Acropolis. "The boundless enthusiasm for building which this little town showed was not the result simply of religious zeal; it can be understood only if one is aware of the competitive urge which is inherent within every Greek" (G. Gruben).