News Archaeology Ancient seafarers built the Mediterranean’s largest known sacred pool A big pool on a tiny island helped Phoenicians track the stars and their gods Shown after excavations, a sacred pool built by Phoenicians around 2,550 years ago on a tiny Mediterranean island includes a replica of a statue of the god Ba’al at its center. Sapienza University of Rome Expedition to Motya Share this:EmailFacebookTwitterPinterestPocketRedditPrint By Bruce Bower March 16, 2022 at 8:01 pm On a tiny island off Sicily’s west coast, a huge pool long ago displayed the star-studded reflections of the gods.