Maktorion or Mactorium (
Greek: ), was an ancient town of
Sicily, in the neighborhood of
Gela, mentioned by
Herodotus (vii. 153), who tells us that it was occupied by a body of Geloan citizens, who were driven out from their country, and were restored to it by
Telines, the ancestor of
Gelon. The name is also found in
Stephanus of Byzantium
Stephanus or Stephan of Byzantium ( la, Stephanus Byzantinus; grc-gre, Στέφανος Βυζάντιος, ''Stéphanos Byzántios''; centuryAD), was a Byzantine grammarian and the author of an important geographical dictionary entitled ''Ethni ...
(''s. v.''), who cites it from
Philistus
Philistus ( grc-gre, Φίλιστος; c. 432 – 356 BC), son of Archomenidas, was a Greek historian from Sicily. Life
Philistus was born in Syracuse around the time the Peloponnesian War began. He was a faithful supporter of the elder Di ...
, but no mention of it occurs in later times. The only clue to its position is that afforded by Herodotus, who calls it a city above Gela, by which he must mean further inland.
Cluverius conjectures that it may have occupied the site of Butera, a town on a hill about 13 km inland from Gela, (Cluver. ''Sicil.'' p. 363), the editors of the
Barrington Atlas of the Greek and Roman World place Maktorion at the ruins and archaeological site at
Monte Bubbonia in the modern ''
comune'' of
Mazzarino,
Province of Caltanissetta
The Province of Caltanissetta ( it, provincia di Caltanissetta; scn, pruvincia di Nissa or ; officially ''Libero consorzio comunale di Caltanissetta'') is a province in the southern part of Sicily, Italy. Following the suppression of the Sicilia ...
.
References
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{{coord missing, Italy
Ancient cities in Sicily
Ruins in Italy
Ancient Greek archaeological sites in Italy
Former populated places in Italy