Latomia dei Niccolini

The area, on the edge of the Punic and Roman necropolis of Lilybaeum east of the ancient city, is set within a vast complex of latomie, used by the early Christian community as a cemetery. Of these, that of the Niccolini constitutes the main nucleus. Later, the area became the garden of the convent of the Augustinian Fathers, known precisely as the Niccolini, near the church of Santa Maria dell’Itria.
The latomie, originally open quarries for the extraction of calcarenite during the building expansion of the Roman city of Lilybaeum (late 2nd-early 3rd century AD), were reused as a cemetery between the 3rd and 4th centuries by groups of different religions, both Christian and Jewish. In the latomia of the Niccolini, in fact, as in other cemetery areas of Lilybaeum, oil lamps with the Jewish symbol of the menorah have been found. Studies conducted since the late 19th century have revealed burial complexes with arcosoli, loculi and wall niches. However, abandonment, construction of the adjacent modern cemetery, and contemporary stone quarrying activities have compromised the state of preservation of the burials and destroyed many valuable frescoes.

Within the latomia, archaeological investigations in 1996 discovered a complex consisting of two cubicula with a Greek cross plan and a third with an L-shaped plan, as well as seventeen monolithic sarcophagi. The central arcosolium of the northwest complex preserves a rich pictorial decoration with Christological symbols and red rosebuds.
The most outstanding feature is a small southern room with three arcosoli, the floor of which is decorated with a polychrome mosaic depicting a kantharos with water spouts. The parapets of two tombs preserve painted scenes reminiscent of Hellenistic-Alexandrian culture and North African mosaics. The frescoes depict river landscapes and hunting scenes, with floral motifs also common in other Lilyba contexts, alluding to the paradisiacal environment.
Visits are by archaeologists from the ArcheOfficina cooperative.