Trapani

Trapani [ˈtraːpani]  listen  (Sicilian: Tràpani; Latin: Drepanon, Greek: Δρέπανον) is a city and comune on the west coast of Sicily in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an important fishing port and the main gateway to the nearby Egadi Islands.

History

Trapani was founded by the Elymians to serve as the port of the nearby city of Erice (ancient Eryx), which overlooks it from Monte San Giuliano. The city sits on a low-lying promontory jutting out into the Mediterranean Sea.

It was originally named Drepana or Drépanon from the Greek word for "sickle", because of the curving shape of its harbour. Carthage seized control of the city in 260 BC, subsequently making it an important naval base, but ceded it to Rome in 241 BC following the Battle of the Aegates in the First Punic War.

Two ancient legends tell of mythical origins for the city. In the first legend, Trapani stemmed from the sickle which fell from the hands of the goddess Demeter while she was seeking for her daughter Persephone, who had been kidnapped by Hades. The second myth features Saturn, who eviscerated his father Uranus, god of the sky, with a sickle which, falling into the sea, created the city. In ancient times, Saturn was the god-protector of Trapani. Today, Saturn's statue stands in a piazza in the centre of the city.

Drepane (genus)

Drepane is a genus of fishes known commonly as the sicklefishes. It is the only genus in the perciform fish family Drepaneidae. These fish occur in the Indian and western Pacific Oceans, and in the eastern Atlantic near Africa.

Species

The currently recognized species in this genus are:

See also

References