The Dirillo, or Acate, is a river in

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

which springs from the Hyblaean Mountains and flows through the areas of Vizzini, Licodia Eubea, Mazzarrone, Chiaramonte Gulfi, Acate, Vittoria, Gela. It enters the Strait of Sicily south-east of the town of Gela. As the largest river in the area it is sometimes known as the ''Fiume Grande''. The river was known in antiquity as the Achates ( grc, Ἀχάτης). It was noted by Silius Italicus for the remarkable clearness of its waters.

Theophrastus Theophrastus (; grc-gre, Θεόφραστος ; c. 371c. 287 BC), a Greek philosopher and the successor to Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. He was a native of Eresos in Lesbos.Gavin Hardy and Laurence Totelin, ''Ancient Botany'', Routle ...

in his treatise '' On Stones'' (ca. 315 B.C.) indicates that the name of the gemstone ''achates'' (

agate Agate () is a common rock formation, consisting of chalcedony and quartz as its primary components, with a wide variety of colors. Agates are primarily formed within volcanic and metamorphic rocks. The ornamental use of agate was common in ...

) was based on the source of such stones from this river.

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/2479), called Pliny the Elder (), was a Roman author, naturalist and natural philosopher, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the emperor Vespasian. He wrote the encyclopedic ...

makes the same connection in his ''

Naturalis Historia The ''Natural History'' ( la, Naturalis historia) is a 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. ...

''Pliny the Elder, ''The Natural History'', Book XXXVII Chapter 54
at the Perseus Project 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 monocl ...

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 Polo is a ball game played on horseback, a traditional field sport and one of the world's oldest known team sports. The game is played by two opposing teams with the objective of score (game), scoring using a long-handled wooden mallet to hit ...

petrochemical plants. With good fishing and camping facilities, as well its natural scenic beauty, this area has become a tourist attraction.

Footnotes

References

:''This article includes material from its counterpart in the Italian-language Wikipedia « :it:Dirillo », specifically fro
this version
''

External links

Rivers of Italy Rivers of Sicily Gela Rivers of the Province of Caltanissetta Rivers of the Province of Catania Rivers of the Province of Ragusa European drainage basins of the Mediterranean Sea {{Italy-river-stub