Messina and the Greek colony of Tyndaris

Description

Messina and the Greek colony of Tyndaris – Excursions from Port

Messina was the most important port of departure for European knights on their way to the Crusades. Such a Crusade prompted the visit of Richard the Lionheart and King Philip II of France in 1190. In Messina, we will see a church with bronze statues (King Christ church) and also a viewpoint that’s one of the oldest fortresses in Messina. The last stop of the excursion is the cathedral of Messina with its very particular astronomical clock (the biggest in the world).

Ancient Tyndaris is located on high ground overlooking the Tyrrhenian coast about 60 kilometers west of Messina. Tyndaris was one of the most important Greek cities in Sicily. Following the fall of the Empire and the arrival of Christianity, its importance continued, and in the 6th century, it became a diocesan see. The Sanctuary of the Black Madonna is Tindari’s main religious attraction. The Saracens destroyed the city in 836. Tindari’s amphitheater was built in the 4th century BC. It has the ruins of simple temples and the so-called basilica, a fine example of Greco-Roman architecture that began in the 4th century BC and was successively modified for use as a meeting place. There were also baths at Tyndaris and some splendid dwellings.