Man with horse pinax 490-450 BCE

"Such doubts existed because up to then, on the basis of the artefacts unearthed in the territory of the ancient polis and on the accounts of ancient and modern travelers, had been proposed several areas that could be assumed as identifiable with the famous Sanctuary of the antiquity (among them the ruins of Casa Marafioti and the Sanctuary area of Marasà).

All of this was due to the fact that the idea of discovering the precise location of the ancient Persephoneion fascinated for centuries all of those that approached the history of the ancient Locri (because of their profession, as a subject of study or, simply, for passion). And the reason is that the Sanctuary was described by the ancient historians as known and revered throughout the ancient world and, precisely thanks to such a situation, it could count on a vast richness that throughout history were often the object of the appetites of foreign sovereigns or common criminals (see Livy, Ab Urbe Condita, XXIX 8, 9 and XXXI 12, 1-4, passages quoted in History - Greek Age, Chapter VI e Roman Age, Chapter IV), or even, as in the case of Pleminius (see History - Roman Age, Chapter III), of regents pro tempore of the city.

Therefore the identification made by Paolo Orsi marked the final word on the centuries-old search for the Sanctuary of Persephone.

From the excavations carried on, the archaeologist from Rovereto brought to light some impressive retaining walls made out of a sandstone known as ammollis (term derived from the vulgarization of the Byzantine Greek word ammolithos, that literally means "stone made of sand": ammos = sand and lithos = stone), a stone typical of this area; walls that, very likely, also marked the boundaries of the Sanctuary area consecrated to the deity (temenos).

Within these boundaries Orsi found a structure, located immediately at the base of the hill, built with limestone blocks of excellent quality and not with ammollis; a precise choice made, probably, to emphasize the importance of the monumental structure built with such a valuable stone. The structure was built around a square pit that, although nowadays devoted of the monumental structures that in the antiquity stood above it, was interpreted by the archaeologist as a thesauros of the Sanctuary.

The exploration of the area has led to the conclusion that the Sanctuary was not characterized by the presence of a temple (which, moreover, is not the key element of Greek sanctuaries), but its monumental shape was ensured by the impressive retaining walls that also had the function to define, in the limited space provided by the natural gorge formed by the two hills of Mannella and Abbadessa, a narrow and dimly lit path of access to the consecrated area; path that, combined with the peculiar characteristics of the place, doubtless provided the ancient visitor a real feeling of being in an otherworldly place ruled by Persephone, Goddess of the underworld."

-taken from locriantica link below

Man with horse pinax 490-450 BCE. Pinax, found in the holy shrine of Persephone at Locri in the district Mannella. Locri was part of Magna Graecia and is situated on the coast of the Ionian Sea in Calabria in Italy. Museo Nazionale Archeologico at Reggio Di Calabria in Italy.

Source:

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Locri_Pinax_Man_With_Horse.jpg

 

Quote:

https://www.locriantica.it/english/site/persephoneion_eng.htm