From periphery to core: assessing ru- ral settlement system and economy in the reign of Hieron II (southeastern Sicily)

The paper presents an analysis of the rural landscape that developed during the early Hellenistic period (late fourth-mid-third century BC) in the eastern region of Sicily which was under the influence of Syracuse, through a reading of the archaeological data currently available. Due to the paradigmatic value already assumed in ancient historiography, the reign of Hieron II has been subject of wide interest. However, archaeological research has made it possible to clarify not only the main features of the major urban developments of the Hieronian age, but also interesting perspectives on its extent and economic structure.