The Lost Temple Of Hercules Gaditanus Possibly Discovered In Spain
A graduate archaeology student at the University of Seville made some big archaeology news in 2022 when he announced that he might have found the lost Temple of Hercules Gaditanus. Considered a “holy grail” by many archaeologists, the temple was possibly spotted by Ricardo Belizón while he studied topographic models for an unrelated project.
While sorting through data from Spain’s PNOA-LiDAR project — which has mapped the country since 2009 — Belizón noticed a structure submerged by the Caño de Sancti Petri channel off the Bay of Cádiz. It appeared to be about 1,000 feet long and 500 feet wide and matched what researchers know about the elusive Temple of Hercules Gaditanus.
University of SevilleA graduate student spotted the structure submerged by a shallow channel in Spain.
“The documentary sources we analyzed, the archaeological information together with the images obtained with digital models of the site, lead us to believe that this could be the mythical temple of Hercules,” Milagros Alzaga, the head of the Andalusian Institute’s Center for Underwater Archaeology, explained, noting that the coastline has changed over the centuries.
If the structure is the Temple of Hercules Gaditanus, then Belizón would have made a very exciting discovery. According to ancient accounts, the religious site was visited by Julius Caesar, who allegedly cried after seeing a statue of Alexander the Great, and the Carthaginian general Hannibal, who came to the temple to pay homage to his military successes.
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