Acropoli di Cuma, le scoperte archeologiche parlano attraverso i nuovi reperti

Archaeological excavations at the acropolis of Cumae, Campaign VII, directed by Professor Carlo Rescigno of the University of Campania Giuseppe Vanvitelli. The study of the finds from the excavation campaigns at the acropolis of Cumae represents a unique opportunity to better understand the chronology of the oldest city, its connections with Greek and Mediterranean centers, and the site's long history as a cult center, from the earliest phases (8th century BC) to the final phases, with its abandonment in the Middle Ages. "The acropolis of Cumae, the first Greek colony in the West, was the seat of the city's principal and most ancient cults," the university's presentation states. "Always a site of myth, its fame has been primarily linked to the multifaceted figure of Apollo and his obscure prophecies, uttered through the Sibyl. From the legendary voyages of Aeneas and Daedalus, the tyrant of Aristodemus, from the wars against the Etruscans to the conquest of the Campanians, from the splendor of the Augustan era to the devastation of the Greco-Gothic wars, up to the birth of regime archaeology during the Fascist era, Cumae is a palimpsest of places and stories. Since 2011, a research project at the University of Campania, directed by Professor Carlo Rescigno, has envisioned excavation campaigns on the acropolis, particularly in the temple on the upper terrace (the so-called Temple of Jupiter) and on the lower plateau on the eastern slopes. The excavations have contributed to outline the main phases of occupation of the upper terrace, from the first faint traces of the cult installation in the 8th century BC, to the construction of the peripteral temple and the monumental renovations of the Hellenistic and Roman imperial periods, up to its transformation into a Christian basilica. They also uncovered, on the lower plateau, another church with its burial area.