Page - 174 - in The Power of Urban Water - Studies in premodern urbanism

174 SophieBouffier It is commonplace in ancient historiography to accuse theWestern Greeks of engaging in the tryphè, this inordinate taste for luxury, or even lust and debauchery.62 But these indications, whichare ahapax inour sources, underline the interest theDeinomenidshad for gardens and luxuriousparks.TheParadisoaqueduct,whosenamemayrefer toanancientplacenamewhose meaning has been lost,63 could be the vector of this lushness, allowingHieron I, successor of Gelon, to create a kind of paradise garden, like the Greeks created later with gymnasiums in largecities. If thealpha incisedoncertaincovers to theseaccesswells really refers toan inven- toryof facilities, theParadisoaqueductmayhavebeenthefirst investmentofatyrantconcerned abouthiswell-beingand theostentatious representationofhis opulence andpower. From theDeinomenids toHieron II: theGalermi aqueduct, aproject of theHellenisticKing? However, the Galermi Aqueduct, currently the best dated, does not go further back than the Hellenisticperiod,at least for thesectionof theBottiglieria,ashighlightedbytheroomdecorat- ed with the carved pediment and theminimal repairs in Roman times (the tabulae ansatae). Should we look at Hieron II’s policies, who came to power around 270BC, in an island torn apartbycenturies-oldconflictswith theCarthaginians?Hieron IIbegan the lastperiodofpeace for the city, before the intervention of the Romans in 213–212BC, whichmarks the end of the independence of the island. He pacified the region, and developed the territorial exploitation of his kingdom,which extended throughout the southeast quarter of Sicily. Cicero, andmany contemporaryhistoriansafterhim,attribute tohimtheLexHieronicaongrain,which taxed the production of cereals and enriched the coffers of the kingdom,while intensifyinghis relations withRome, exportinghisgrain to the Italiancapital.64On its site, thepacifiedcitywas repopu- lated,economicrevivalwas reflected in theemergenceofnewneighbourhoodsandthe installa- tionofcrafts,notablyceramics,whichrequire largeamountsofwater.HieronII launchedmajor investments intheancientcity,builtgiganticmonuments: thecurrent theatre,abletoaccommo- date between 14,000 to 17,000 spectators, or an altar dedicated to Zeus Liberator,which occu- pies a space that has the dimensions of anOlympic stadium, that is, almost 200m long, and was decoratedwith gardens. This king blendswell into the pattern of the Eastern Hellenistic sovereign,amodelknowninEgypt, atAlexandria,withAlexander theGreatand thePtolemies, andatPergamumwiththeAttalids,whoarealsoresponsible for thecreationandthebeautifica- tion of new cities: temples, altars andmonumental porticos, gymnasiums and libraries adorn the capitals of their kingdoms.Hieron II is no exception to this tradition.He is surroundedby acourtofartistsand intellectuals, including themathematicianandphysicistArchimedes,who develops for his sovereign and city a number of inventions. Besides the hydraulic screw, that spread to theeasternworld,andagigantic shipsoenormousnoportcouldhost it,65hesuppos- edly imagined ingenious stratagems66 to keep the Roman army in check during the siege that it ledagainst the city after thedeathofHieron II between213and212BC.CouldArchimedesbe thedesigner andgreat architect ofGalermi?Couldwe thenattribute theaqueduct toHieron II? Although thehypothesis is plausible,we still lack evidence to prove it. Only the niche discov- ered on the Ciccio catchment could point us in this direction, but the inscription lacksmonu- mentalitywhencompared to thoseof the theatredating from the reignofHieron.67 62 See, amongothers, anarticle that is always referenced,Nenci 1983. 63 Bouffier 2011, 96–99. 64 Cic.Verr. 2. 3; Carcopino 1914; Pittia 2012. 65 Pomey–Tchernia 2005. 66 Mertens–Beste 2013. 67 BernabòBrea 1967, 102.