Su uno strumento musicale ri-trovato nel Museo Archeologico Regionale “Antonino Salinas” di Palermo. Il frammento di aulos dal santuario della Malophoros

The aim of this paper is the study of an aulos fragment from the sanctuary of Malophoros at Selinunte. The instrument is conform to an ‘Early type’ aulos: it was a very widely-used spread wind instrument with finger holes and a reed mouthpiece. The ‘Early type’ musical instrument was the Greek (double) aulos of predominantly the Archaic and Classical periods, which had no mechanism for operating on the tone holes. This discovery is very significant, particularly with regard to the performance of music and ritual dancing associated with the cult activity in the sanctuary of Malophoros: along with terracotta figurines of auloi players, bronze and terracotta bells, the aulos fragment documents the existence of musical (and choral) performances in this sacred place. As can be seen in other Greek cities, its architecture might reflect a spatial organization that was necessary for instrumental and choral practices, as well as for ritual performances. This discovery highlights the importance of music at Selinus, the city of the poet and musician Telestes, already in the Early Archaic period.