The Dirillo, or Acate, is a river in
Sicily
Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...
which springs from the
Hyblaean Mountains and flows through the areas of
Vizzini,
Licodia Eubea,
Mazzarrone,
Chiaramonte Gulfi
Chiaramonte Gulfi (Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Ciaramunti'') is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Ragusa, Sicily, southern Italy.
Geography
Chiaramonte Gulfi is located on a hill-top north of Ragusa, Italy, Ragusa at an altitude of ...
,
Acate,
Vittoria,
Gela
Gela (Sicilian and ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the regional autonomy, Autonomous Region of Sicily, Italy; in terms of area and population, it is the largest municipality on the southern coast of Sicily. Gela is part of the Province o ...
. It enters the
Strait of Sicily
The Strait of Sicily (also known as Sicilian Strait, Sicilian Channel, Channel of Sicily, Sicilian Narrows and Pantelleria Channel; or the ; or , ' or ') is the strait between Sicily and Tunisia. The strait is about wide and divides the Ty ...
south-east of the town of
Gela
Gela (Sicilian and ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the regional autonomy, Autonomous Region of Sicily, Italy; in terms of area and population, it is the largest municipality on the southern coast of Sicily. Gela is part of the Province o ...
. As the largest river in the area it is sometimes known as the ''Fiume Grande''.
The river was known in antiquity as the Achates (). It was noted by
Silius Italicus
Tiberius Catius Asconius Silius Italicus (, c. 26 – c. 101 AD) was a Roman senator, orator and epic poet of the Silver Age of Latin literature. His only surviving work is the 17-book '' Punica'', an epic poem about the Second Punic War and the ...
for the remarkable clearness of its waters.
Theophrastus
Theophrastus (; ; c. 371 – c. 287 BC) was an ancient Greek Philosophy, philosopher and Natural history, naturalist. A native of Eresos in Lesbos, he was Aristotle's close colleague and successor as head of the Lyceum (classical), Lyceum, the ...
in his treatise ''
On Stones'' (ca. 315 B.C.) indicates that the name of the gemstone ''achates'' (
agate
Agate ( ) is a banded variety of chalcedony. Agate stones are characterized by alternating bands of different colored chalcedony and sometimes include macroscopic quartz. They are common in nature and can be found globally in a large number of d ...
) was based on the source of such stones from this river.
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...
makes the same connection in his ''
Naturalis Historia
The ''Natural History'' () is a Latin work by Pliny the Elder. The largest single work to have survived from the Roman Empire to the modern day, the ''Natural History'' compiles information gleaned from other ancient authors. Despite the work' ...
''
Pliny the Elder, ''The Natural History'', Book XXXVII Chapter 54
at the Perseus Project
The Perseus Digital Library, formerly known as the Perseus Project, is a free-access digital library founded by Gregory Crane in 1987 and hosted by the Department of Classical Studies of Tufts University. One of the pioneers of digital libraries, ...
Agate and chalcedony
Chalcedony ( or ) is a cryptocrystalline form of silica, composed of very fine intergrowths of quartz and moganite. These are both silica minerals, but they differ in that quartz has a trigonal crystal structure, while moganite is monoclinic ...
can still be found here. During the period of Arab rule it became known as ''Wadi‑Ikrilu'': ‘The River of Acrille’, an ancient Greek-Roman colony that stood in the surroundings.
In the 1950s, the Azienda Nazionale Idrogenazione Combustibili dammed the river near Licodia Eubea to create Lago Dirillo, a reservoir for the Polo petrolchimico di Gela petrochemical plants. With good fishing and camping facilities, as well its natural scenery, this area has become a tourist attraction.
References
External links
Dirillo river (Achates river), Acate, Ragusa Province, Sicily, Italy
Rivers of Italy
Rivers of Sicily
Gela
Rivers of the Province of Caltanissetta
Rivers of the Metropolitan City of Catania
Rivers of the Province of Ragusa
European drainage basins of the Mediterranean Sea
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