UNESCO: Rocky Necropolis of Pantalica
The Necropolis of Pantalica in southeast Sicily, Italy, is a collection of cemeteries with rock-cut chamber tombs dating from the 7th to the 13th centuries BC. There have been thought to be over 5000 tombs, although the most recent estimate suggests a figure of just under 4000.
They extend around the flanks of a large promontory located at the junction of the Anapo river with its tributary, the Calcinara, about 23 kilometres northwest of Syracuse. Together with the city of Syracuse, Pantalica was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005.
Associated with the tombs are the remains of dwellings dating from the period of Greek colonisation and other vestiges of the Byzantine notably the foundations of the Anaktoron (Prince’s Palace).
