Segesta Things to Do Tips by Polly74

The Amphitheater

Segesta's other main monument, the amphitheatre, stands on the slopes of Monte Barbaro (literally Mount Barbarian) at an elevation of 400 meters above sea level. The theatre has 20 tiers of steps which served as seats, divided into 7 sections by aisles that lead to the U-shaped stage area. The diameter of the semi-circular seating area is 63 meters. The seating area is known as the "cavea" and a good part of it was carved out of the solid rock of the mountain. Scholars differ as to when the it was built. Some archeologists believe it was built around the same time as the temple, or maybe some decades earlier, circa 450 BC. The amphitheatre hosts Greek tragedies (in Italian) most Summers, sometimes alternating seasons with the theatre in Taormina.

The Temple

The temple of Segesta is 61 meters long (190 feet) and 26 meters wide, built upon 4 steps, with a total of 36 Doric columns supporting the stone roof-frame of the structure.
There are 14 columns on each of the long sides of the building and 6 columns across the front and back, for a total of 36 columns. The columns are of a "rough" finish because they were never "fluted."
Apparently, the temple was never completed. It also appears that the structure never had a "cella," or roof, and archeologists are still in disagreement as to whether the Temple was deliberately planned this way, or was just never finished. It is believed that the edifice was erected between 420 and 430 BC.