Herakleia Archaeological Park

The Herakleia Archaeological Park is located on the northern outskirts of Policoro, next to the National Archaeological Museum of the Siritide. It occupies the Collina del Barone (Baron’s Hill), a small rise on the left bank of the River Agri, where the acropolis of the ancient Greek city of Herakleia, known to the Romans as Eraclea, once stood.

Siris and Herakleia

Herakleia was founded in 434-433 BC by settlers from Taranto and Thurii. The Tarentine element soon gained the upper hand, and between the 4th and 3rd centuries BC the city had strong ties with Taranto. Before it, on the same hill, stood Siris: many scholars attribute to it the numerous archaic remains found during the excavations. Siris was a colony founded in the first half of the 7th century BC by Ionians from Colophon, in present-day Turkey. After roughly 110 years of prosperity, it was destroyed by a coalition of Achaean cities led by Sybaris, with Metaponto and Croton.

After the Second Punic War (218-202 BC), Herakleia went into decline. In Roman times it remained a small settlement, and from the 1st century AD large parts of the acropolis were abandoned and turned into necropolises (burial grounds).

What to see

• The acropolis neighbourhood: a grid-plan urban layout, with the main street (plateia) crossing the hill from east to west and secondary streets (stenopòi) running at right angles. The city blocks were divided into homes with rooms for daily life and work. In the Hellenistic period there were also luxurious peristyle houses, with drainage channels and mosaics.
• The sanctuary of Demeter and the sacred area in the Varratizzo gully, south of the hill, where the agorà (marketplace) and several temples stood, including those of Dionysus and Demeter.
• The archaic temple and the sacred grove, with the art trail «Siris», opened in November 2025. It was curated by STUDIO STUDIO STUDIO, the workshop founded by Edoardo Tresoldi. Gijs Van Vaerenbergh evokes the volumes of the temple with an “inverted ruin”. Selva Aparicio has created seven sculptures inspired by the votive shrines in the sacred grove. Max Magaldi has designed an immersive soundscape, with the poet Claudia Fabris and the musician Daniela Pes, which guides visitors all the way to the sanctuary of Demeter.

Your visit can be completed at the Museo della Siritide, just a short walk away, which displays the finds from the excavations. There is a combined ticket for the museum and the park.

How to get there

• By car: take the exit for Policoro from the SS106 Jonica (Ionian coast road) and follow the signs for the town centre and the Museo della Siritide. The park is on Via Cristoforo Colombo, on the northern outskirts of the town, next to the museum.
• From Matera: about an hour’s drive. Head towards Metaponto and continue south on the SS106 Jonica.
• By train: the nearest station is Policoro-Tursi, on the Taranto-Reggio Calabria line. From there the park is a few minutes’ drive or taxi ride away.
• Ticket office: there is a single ticket office, located in the Museo della Siritide, where tickets for the park can also be bought.

Useful information

• Address: Via Cristoforo Colombo, 75025 Policoro (MT)
• Winter opening hours (updated October 2026): daily 9:00-16:30, Tuesdays 14:00-16:30. The ticket office closes at 16:00. Opening hours change with the seasons, so it is worth checking them before your visit.
• Tickets: full price €3, reduced €2. Combined ticket with the museum €6.
• No booking required; guided tours available.
• Contacts: tel. 333 612 8053 · [email protected]