Scyllaeum (

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

: ) was a promontory, and ancient town or fortress, on the west coast of

Bruttium 01 or '01 may refer to: * The year 2001, or any year ending with 01 * The month of January * 1 (number) Music * 01'' (Richard Müller album), 2001 * ''01'' (Son of Dave album), 2000 * ''01'' (Urban Zakapa album), 2011 * ''O1'' (Hiroyuki Sawa ...

(modern Calabria), about 25 km north of Rhegium (

Reggio di Calabria Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label=Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popula ...

), and almost exactly at the entrance of the Sicilian strait. The promontory is well described by Strabo as a projecting rocky headland, jutting out boldly into the sea, and united to the mainland by a narrow neck or isthmus, so as to form two small but well sheltered bays, one on each side. There can be no doubt that this rocky promontory was the one which became the subject of so many fables, and which was represented by

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

and other poets as the abode of the monster Scylla. But the dangers of the rock of Scylla were far more fabulous than those of its neighbor Charybdis, and it is difficult to understand how, even in the infancy of navigation, it could have offered any obstacle more formidable than a hundred other headlands whose names are unknown to fame. At a later period

Anaxilas Anaxilas or Anaxilaus ( grc-gre, Ἀναξίλας, Ἀναξίλαος), son of Cretines, was a tyrant of Rhegium (modern Reggio Calabria). He was originally from Messenia, a region in the Peloponnese. Life Anaxilas was master of Rhegium in 494 ...

, the despot of Rhegium, being struck with the natural strength of the position, fortified the rock, and established a naval station there, for the purpose of checking the incursions of the Tyrrhenian pirates. In consequence of this a small town grew up on the spot; and hence

Pliny Pliny may refer to: People * Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), ancient Roman nobleman, scientist, historian, and author of ''Naturalis Historia'' (''Pliny's Natural History'') * Pliny the Younger (died 113), ancient Roman statesman, orator, w ...

speaks of an ''oppidum Scyllaeum''; but it was probably always a small place, and other writers speak only of the promontory. At the present day the rock is still occupied by a fort, which is a post of considerable strength, while a small town (modern

Scilla ''Scilla'' () is a genus of about 30 to 80 species of bulb-forming perennial herbaceous plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae. Sometimes called the squills in English, they are native to woodlands, subalpine meadows, and sea ...

) stretches down the slopes towards the two bays. The distance from the castle to the opposite point of the Sicilian coast, marked by the Torre del Faro, is stated by

William Henry Smyth Admiral William Henry Smyth (21 January 1788 – 8 September 1865) was a Royal Navy officer, hydrographer, astronomer and numismatist. He is noted for his involvement in the early history of a number of learned societies, for his hydrographic ...

at 6047 yards (c. 5.5 km), or rather less than 3.5 English miles, but the strait afterwards contracts considerably, so that its width between the Punta Pezzo and the nearest point of Sicily does not exceed 3971 yards (c. 3.6 km).Smyth, ''Sicily'', p. 108.

References

*{{SmithDGRG Pre-Roman cities in Italy Bruttium