The Road (Motya) (Motya)
The road axis that came out of the North Gate continued with an artificial road that connected the island with the promontory of Birgi on the mainland. The road about 1,7 km long and about 7 m wide, in order to allow the passage of two wagons side by side, is preserved in sections and is currently submerged due to the rise in sea level. It was built on a ballast about 12,50 m wide at the base, covered with irregular stone slabs (40 cm to 60 cm wide), and is flanked by low walls guardrail 45 cm high.
The road was built around the middle of 6th century BC, in relation to the displacement of the necropolis on the promontory of birgi (where tombs ad burial with sarcophagi monolithic of sandstone o per case with stone slabs dating from between VI and the end of 5th century BC). However, a contemporary necropolis also existed on the northeastern coast of the island. On the basis of the aerial photos, some submerged structures in large square blocks arranged to the west of the road seem to form a sort of pier for a small port, of which the same artificial road and a cliff parallel to the coast must have constituted the mooring docks. At the current coastal limit, a pavement made with pebbles over a bed of earth and sand was found. About 500 m from the North Gate the road widened into a pitch (10 x 14 m) built with large square blocks, a resting place or base for a small building.
Source: wikipedia, web
Photo: Di Davide Mauro - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7541020
Card insertion: Ignazio Caloggero
Information contributions: Web, Region of Sicily
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