- UNESCO
Photo: Michiel1972, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
At a glance
- Type
- Archaeological site
- Elevation
- 3 m above sea level
- Coordinates
- 38°00′54″ N, 12°30′45″ E
History and description
Drepana (Ancient Greek: Δρέπανα) was an Elymian, Carthaginian, and Roman port in antiquity on the western coast of Sicily. It was the site of a crushing Roman defeat by the Carthaginians in 249 BC. It eventually developed into the modern Italian city of Trapani.
History
The town was founded by the Elymians to serve as the port of the nearby city of Eryx (present-day Erice), which overlooks it from Monte Erice. The city sits on a low-lying promontory jutting out into the Mediterranean Sea. The town, 40 km (25 mi) north of Lilybaeum, had been fortified by the Carthaginians, who resettled part of the population to Eryx. In 241, it was besieged by G. Lutatius Catulus, and later used as a naval base.
The town features in the Aeneid as the site of the death and funeral games of Anchises.
Carthage seized control of the city in 260 BC, subsequently making it an important naval base. The naval battle of Drepanum took place in 249 BC and was a major victory for Carthage against the Roman Republic in the First Punic War. After the Battle of the Aegates and Carthage's loss of the war, the town was ceded to Roman control in 241 BC.
It never achieved the status of a civitas in Roman times.
Text from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Full article: «Drepana».
Photos
Getting there
TrapaniTrain, nearest
700 m as the crow flies
Drepana
Terminal traghetti Trapani200 m
Aeroporto di Trapani-Birgi11.6 km
Distances are as the crow flies, not walking or driving.
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Nearby
See on the mapMore archaeological sites in Sicily
- UNESCO
Frequently asked questions
Where is Drepana?
Drepana is in Trapani, in the province of Trapani (Sicily), Italy. GPS coordinates: 38.01500, 12.51250.
What else is there to see near Drepana?
Nearby you’ll find: Palazzo della Giudecca (200 m away), Palazzo Senatorio (300 m away), San Rocco Museum of Contemporary Art (300 m away).
Sources and licences
Text. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Data. Wikidata (CC0); opening hours and contacts OpenStreetMap (ODbL).
Photos. Wikimedia Commons, author and licence on every image.
Credits for the 5 photos
- View on Trapani — Michiel1972, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Greco-Roman amphitheatre — Jerome Bon, CC BY 2.0
- Nave romana Marausa — Civa61, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Reflections of old Trapani — Kned Wiki, CC0
- Selinunte - tempio C — Franck Manogil from Beziers, France, CC BY 2.0
Updated 28 October 2026. All sources and licences