Ricerc@Sapienza

Recent excavations by Sapienza University of Rome and the Superintendency of Trapani in the Sanctuary of the Tophet at Motya allowed a full re-appraisal of this important monument of the Phoenician religious culture in the West. The western sector of the sanctuary with Temple T6, possibly devoted to Astarte, was re-excavated and its stratigraphy and plan reconstructed. Building T5 closing the urns field to the west in front of the wells was also re-explored, producing a complete reconstruction of its architecture and stratigraphy. A further sounding has been excavated in the easternmost area of the entrance to the sanctuary, where a small shrine (T8) was identified, with a bothros and a baetyl. Finds in Temple T6 have shown that the whole area of the Tophet was used for cultic activities since the mid of the 8th until the end of the 3rd century BC.