Due to its strategic location and natural resources Sicily has always been a coveted island. Phoenicians and Greeks were the first to settle and their colonies made a lasting contribution to the cultural history of Europe. In the following centuries a sequence of rulers invaded Sicily, from Romans and Byzantines, Moors and various European royal houses up to the invasion of the allies in 1943. All those cultures living together - sometimes in peace, sometimes conflicting - affected each other and left their traces, on the island and in the sea. Sicily and the Sea highlights the culture of the island through the ages. Thanks to modern techniques, more and more archaeological treasures are found. Lovers of underwater archaeology, ports, temples, sea battles and shipwrecks are generously served. But Sicily and the Sea is about much more: about Homeric monsters, folklore, modern politics, and the many writers and film directors who were inspired by this island itself.