Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT

Ancient ‘harbour’ revealed to be part of fertility god’s lavish shrine

Re-examination of an artificial body of water uncovers its true purpose as a ritual pool dedicated to the god Ba’al.
View of the refurbished ‘Kothon’ with a replica of the statue of Ba’al at its centre, a sacred pool of water in the countryside.

A replica of an ancient statue of the god Ba’al stands in a refurbished pool dedicated to the deity. Credit: Sapienza Univ. Rome Expedition to Motya

A 2,500-year-old artificial lake on an Italian island was one of the largest sacred pools in the ancient Mediterranean1.

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Learn more

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Nature 603, 553 (2022)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-00737-9

References

  1. Nigro, L. Antiquity https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2022.8 (2022).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Subjects

Latest on:

Nature Careers

Jobs

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing

Search

Advanced search

Quick links