The Argimusco Plateau is a naturalistic site located in the municipality of Montalbano Elicona, in the province of Messina, in the ancient Val Demone.
It is part of the Oriented Natural Reserve of the Malabotta Wood and is a vast plateau between 1165 and 1230 meters above the sea level.
Its rocks have been shaped by atmospheric agents over time, becoming anthropomorphic and zoomorphic forms of great charm and curious beauty.
This rock complex is considered one of the most interesting in the whole of southern Italy.
The study of the sky
However, Argimusco is above all known for its importance in astronomy.
It is assumed that the surrounding rocks and landscape were used in observing the sky, to define the movements of the stars and the alternation of the seasons, setting the basis for a calendar.
The Argimusco plateau is officially exempt from any archaeological excavation, although it can be assumed, thanks to findings from the surrounding areas, that the anthropization of the site dates back to the Bronze Age.
At that time, it is very likely that the plateau was used as a natural sanctuary, where rituals related to the gods of Earth and Heaven were celebrated.
This has often led to erroneously defining it as the 'Sicilian Stonehenge', although in the Argimusco there are no megaliths, but natural stones, some of which are shaped by the hand of man. In short, a more correct parallelism would be that of 'Sicilian Marcahuasi'.
Here we organize daytime guided tours from sunrise to sunset and at night for the view of the Milky Way.
The participation in our tour-event at the dawn of the Equinoxes has a strong emotional impact.
Our next "Autumn Equinox" tour is scheduled for 18-19 September 2021
