An amazing cavern set in the limestone quarries that according to the grand master, Caravaggio, was used by the tyrant of Syracusa, Dionisius, as a prison so that he could use the small hole at the top of the cavern to eavesdrop on his political prisoners below. The term, "The Ear of Dionisius" is still used as a metaphor for political eavesdropping, today.
If you look at the apex of the roof of the cavern, you can see the evidence of an old aqueduct. It is my personal belief that this cavern began as a man made aquaduct who's floor later eroded into a larger cavern. When the quarry eventually met up with the ancient eroded aquaduct they continued to quarry inside the cavern creating the extremely large cave we see today. There is obvious evidence of quarying large square stones on the walls inside the cavern.
On the outside of the cavern, high up, to the right of the apex (see photo), you can also see evidence of alternate waterways carved into the limestone many years before the quarry met up with the ancient waterways.Howard and Jayne [ Just Imagine ] 08-Jun-2006