"The hill of San Marco and the acropolis of Santa Teresa - archaeological sites"

In 2005 on the hill of San Marco, archaeologists brought to light the walls of a temple dating back to the Roman period between the 1st BC and the 1st AD.

This is the same temple where in 2003 the famous imperial heads of Caesar, Agrippina and Titus were found which, after a long period in the most important museums in the world, returned to Pantelleria and are currently located at the Pantelleria airport.

From an article in Guida Sicilia dated 11.8.2005

Pantelleria confirms itself as the cradle of Sicilian archaeology: For the superintendent of the sea Sebastiano Tusa, the typology of the site of the discovery also plays a role in supporting the hypothesis of a temple: it is located in the upper part of the town that the populations of the past used for places of worship. But we need to keep our feet on the ground and continue with research and other findings.

The discovery consists of a perfectly stuccoed wall enriched by pilasters, architectural devices that play on recesses - says Tusa - already in use by the Sumerians and also adopted by the Greeks and Romans to correct the optical effect created by the smooth wall. This discovery matches the typology of the site and the rock: perfectly smooth, as was required for a base on which to build a temple.

The discovery enriches an already rich archaeological picture, such as the Punic temple of the 4th century BC - says Sebastiano Tusa - in the acropolis of Santa Teresa, where large blocks approximately 1.20 meters high were discovered, large cisterns of architectural elements relating to a place of worship and various fragments depicting human figures of the Selintunian school.

107 Silver Coins and a Gold Medallion

In August 2010, in the acropolis of Santa Teresa during the excavations begun in 2000, led by Massimo Osanna of the University of Matera, and by Thomas Schafer of the University of Tübingen, a TREASURE was found consisting of 107 silver coins, "denari" dating back to the second half of the 1st century BC, and a gold medallion from the Punic era. These are precious finds which attest, once again, to the importance of the Phoenician, Hellinistic and Roman settlements and were found in an area very close to that of the discovery of the imperial heads, the "Augustea capita" exhibited in August 2010 at the "British Museum in London".