394 
MR. F. C. PENROSE ON THE ORIENTATION OF GREEK TEMPLES. 
Selinus. Latitude 37° 35'. 
Ref. 
letter. 
Stellar 
elements. 
Solar elements. 
Name of 
star. 
A 
+ 35° 29' E. 
+ 28° 16' 
B 
3° 30' 
2° 38' 
ji Geminorum; 
C 
+ 29° 46' 
+ 23° 46' 
rising. 
D 
7h 23m 
8*1 15"! 
E 
— 
10° 30' 
F 
5 h gm 
6 h 0™ 
G 
520 B.C., June 2 
• 
Taormina. 
Lately, some foundations of a small Greek temple have been discovered adjoining 
the celebrated Theatre of Taormina. Although the architecture of the theatre now 
visible is evidently Roman work, it is clear from some remains of foundations and an 
inscription that originally it was truly Greek. But these do not supply distinct 
information as to the antiquity of the first construction ; but the orientation of the 
temple seems to do so. The important city of Naxos, the earliest of the Hellenic 
colonies in Sicily (founded 735 B.C.), lay immediately below the site, but this city was 
utterly destroyed by the Syracusans about 400 b.c. Some remnants, however, of the 
population were collected about fifty years afterwards l:)y a leader named Andromachus 
and established in a new city on a ridge adjoining this theatre, which is about 800 feet 
above the site of the cit}^ of Naxos, and he named it Tauromenium. 
The very great scale of the theatre might, indeed, of itself suggest that it had 
been the work of the flourishing population of the ancient city in the palmy days of 
Greek civilisation, and not that of a town inhabited by returned exiles, and nearer to 
the days of Grecian decadence. And it would not have been out of parallel with 
Greek habits (as seen, for instance, at Segesta) for a theatre to he placed at a great 
height above the inhabited parts of a town, and in tliis case on a site so remarkable 
for its beauty. 
But, in addition to such arguments, the temple seems to give convincing evidence 
that the Taormina Theatre is not that of Tauromenium but of Naxos. Its situation is 
exactly where a small temple dedicated to Bacchus is found in connection with 
several of the Greek theatres. The orientation angle lies between 281° and 282°. 
Owing to a slip in my record, I cannot be positive as to the minutes, but 281° 25' 
vdiich I have adopted must be very near the mark, and I make out the elements to 
that figure. Tovmrds whichever of tlie limits it should be placed, it points out 
a Librm as the star, and the date derivable as at least 300 years earlier than the 
foundation of Tauromenium. 
