Selinunte - Temple E

The southernmost building in this group is Temple E. In the early fifth century B.C. the Selinuntians lost their interest in the giant Temple G and between 465 and 450 B.C. they erected this temple, dedicated to Hera; in the words of G. Gruben, they thereby "finally reached the very zenith of Classical art". Today's visitors are in a position to verify that statement; having been destroyed by an earthquake, the temple was partially rebuilt in 1957-58, and all the columns of the peristyle are standing once more, together with a section of the entablature. The stylobate (base) measures 25.52m/83.75ft by 67.74m/222.25ft, so it was small in comparison with the gigantic Temple G to Apollo, but was still approximately the same size as the Temple of Zeus in Olympia. Temple E, dedicated to Hera, is fully peripteral in design. It has six by 15 columns, each 10.15m/33.25ft high, massive and forming a dense row. The problem of forming the corners is solved by a marked narrowing of the corner trusses, as is found in temples in Greece itself. The ambulatory around the cella is one beam deep on the sides and two beams deep at the ends.

The pronaos (open portico) at the east end corresponds to the opisthodomos (priest's chamber) at the west end, and is also in accord with the Classical building principles employed in Greece. Particularly reminscent of Olympia is the use of carved decoration: like the Olympian Temple of Zeus, for example, the metopes on the peristyle are flat, whereas the pronaos and opisthodomos each had six sculptured plaques above them - the reliefs which are exhibited in the Museum at Palermo. Their themes include Hercules fighting the Amazon women, the Wedding of Zeus and Hera, Artemis and Actaeon, Athena and the giant Enkelados.

However, the internal divisions of the cella match Sicilian traditions. At the end of the cella was the apparently indispensable adyton (priest's sanctuary), and to emphasize the sacred way up to this holy place it had its own steps - an open staircase of ten steps led into the temple, six steps led up to the cella and then a further three to the adyton.