Deorative Lion from the Temple of Victory

THE TEMPLE OF VICTORYAfter the battle between the Greeks and the Carthaginians, the only peripteral temple in the city was built on the left bank off the Imera River, on the eastern side off the Lower City. This area, inhabited since Archaic period, was home to some artisan activities. Private dwellings were demolished to make way for the sacred boundaries off the terenos which included the temple. Several architectural elements discovored in the area lead us to believe that the temenos, enclosed by perimeter wall, was adorned with smaller buildings and votive monuments. According to Diodurus Siculus, the temple was built to celebrate the Greek victory over the Carthaginians. Although it is not known for certain to which god the emole was ded caleo n has been usually attributed to Athena, as it is similar to the temp'e of Athena in Syracuse. THE EXCAVATIONin the first two decades of the nineteenth century, Nicold Palmen found at Himera the remains of a Greek temple. The first excavations were carried out in 1862 by Giuseppe Mel who uncovered the stylobate from the northeast corner of the Temple of Bonfornello and parts of the sima with lion head waterspouts. An accurate survey by Luigi Mauceri (1908) showed a link between the remains of the temole and a large windowed tower from the 16th cenfury, a small church and a housing complex builtaround.Mauceri's drawings unveiled a peripteral hexastyle temple with 14 columns on its long sides.Pirro Marconi (1929-1930) uncovered the surviving structures of the Temple together with parts of the entablature wiich had plummeted from above and were found alonaside the temole. The blocks or the sima with fon head waterspouts referring to two different types, some of which still retained their bright colours, were of particular interest. Twelve leonine heads from the northern side of the temple are exhinded here and in front fie examples of the souther side. made by drierent workers and characterized by a more accentuated plasticism and greater expressiveness. THE ARCHITECTURETho Tempo of Victory was part of a now archtectural movement which devoloped in the first half of tho 5th century BC. Afer the battle in 480 BC. the Temple of victory ot Himero and the Athension in Syracuse wore bunt folloming this innovative tendency. Both were smiar in size and had the some architectural characteristics: the symmetrical balance of the lavout and the harmonous proportions between vertical and horizontal structures.Tho building rests on a base (kropidoma) wth four steps that load to the stylobale whxh aves nse to the columns of the penstasis six on the short sides and fourteen on the long sides These have the same diameter (1.91m ano aro oqualy spaced (« 19m). The large contral naos is flanked by the pronaos and the opisthodomos.We have been unable to rebuild the acroterial figures while the low fragments found suggest that the theme chosen for the pediment was the Gyantomachy. The restoration of the polychrome decoration was based on Pirro Marconi's ouseratons and on Rosario Carta's drawings.### 胜利神庙（Temple of Victory） 在希腊人与迦太基人交战之后，该城唯一一座围柱式神庙（peripteral temple）建于伊梅拉河（Imera River）左岸的下城（Lower City）东侧区域。该区域自古风时期（Archaic period）便有人类定居，曾是若干手工艺活动的聚集地。为了划定包含这座神庙在内的圣区（temenos）的神圣边界，当地的私人住宅均被拆除。该区域出土的若干建筑遗存表明，这座由围墙环绕的圣区内曾点缀有小型建筑与奉献纪念碑。据狄奥多罗斯·西库鲁斯（Diodorus Siculus）记载，这座神庙是为纪念希腊人击败迦太基人的胜利而建。尽管目前尚无法确定这座神庙最初是献给哪位神祇，但学界通常将其归为雅典娜神庙，因为它与叙拉古的雅典娜神庙（Temple of Athena in Syracuse）风格相似。 ### 发掘历程 19世纪前二十年，尼科洛·帕尔门（Nicold Palmen）在希梅拉（Himera）发现了一座希腊神庙的遗存。1862年，朱塞佩·梅尔（Giuseppe Mel）首次开展发掘工作，清理出了邦福尔内洛神庙（Temple of Bonfornello）东北角的柱础平台（stylobate），以及部分带有狮首排水嘴（lion head waterspouts）的檐口饰带（sima）。1908年，路易吉·毛切里（Luigi Mauceri）开展的精准勘测显示，该神庙遗存与一座16世纪的大型带窗塔楼、一座小教堂以及周边的住宅建筑群存在关联。毛切里的绘图揭示，这是一座围柱式六柱神庙（peripteral hexastyle temple），其长边各设有14根立柱。1929至1930年间，皮罗·马尔科尼（Pirro Marconi）清理出了神庙的残存结构，以及从上方坠落、散落在神庙周边的额枋（entablature）残件。其中尤为引人关注的是带有两种不同形制狮首排水嘴的檐口饰带残块，部分残块仍保留着鲜亮的色彩。神庙北侧的12件狮首构件目前在此展出，南侧的5件则由不同工匠制作，其造型的立体感更强，表现力也更为突出。 ### 建筑特征 胜利神庙（Temple of Victory）属于公元前5世纪上半叶兴起的全新建筑风格。公元前480年的战役结束后，希梅拉的胜利神庙与叙拉古的雅典娜神庙均遵循这一创新设计趋势修建。两座神庙规模相近，建筑特征也高度一致：布局对称均衡，竖向与横向结构比例协调和谐。这座神庙建于四级台阶的柱基平台（crepidoma）之上，台阶通向柱础平台，进而支撑起柱廊（peristasis）的立柱：短边各设6根立柱，长边各设14根立柱，所有立柱直径均为1.91米，间距均等（约1.9米）。宽敞的中央内殿（naos）两侧分别设有前殿（pronaos）与后殿（opisthodomos）。目前我们尚无法复原山墙饰（acroterial figures），而出土的低矮残件表明，山墙（pediment）的主题为巨人之战（Gigantomachy）。彩绘装饰（polychrome decoration）的复原工作基于皮罗·马尔科尼的观测记录与罗萨里奥·卡尔塔（Rosario Carta）的绘图完成。