The myth of Scylla and Charybdis: the two monsters of the Strait of Messina

Between the tip of Calabria and the Sicilian coast, the Strait of Messina narrows into a channel just a few miles wide, where the currents never run in one direction: they rise, turn and tangle into whirlpools that have made navigation difficult for centuries. To explain this restless sea, the ancients imagined two monsters lurking on the two shores: Scylla, on the Calabrian rock that today bears her name, and Charybdis, the whirlpool that swallowed ships from the opposite side.

It is one of the most widely read tales of Greek mythology, set down by Homer in the Odyssey and taken up for centuries by Virgil, Ovid and even Dante. This guide follows its sources, the natural phenomenon that inspired it, and the places on the Costa Viola, above all the village of Scilla, where the myth can still be read in the landscape.

The myth according to Homer: Ulysses between Scylla and Charybdis

The oldest version of the myth is in the twelfth book of the Odyssey. To return to Ithaca, Ulysses has to cross a narrow channel guarded by two dangers that no crew can avoid both at once. The sorceress Circe warns him before he sets sail and describes the two monsters: on one side Scylla, a creature with six heads on long necks, hidden in a cave dug into the highest cliff; on the other, an arrow's flight away, Charybdis, who sucks in the sea three times a day and spits it out three times, capable of swallowing an entire ship.

Circe advises Ulysses to keep close to Scylla rather than risk Charybdis: better to lose six companions, one for each of the monster's heads, than the whole ship in the whirlpool. Ulysses follows the advice but cannot avoid the attack: Scylla snatches six sailors from the deck as the ship passes beneath the cliff, and Homer describes them still waving their arms as they are dragged away.

The legend through the centuries: Ovid, Virgil, Dante

Homer's account is not the only one. In Ovid's Metamorphoses, Scylla begins as a beautiful nymph courted by the sea god Glaucus: it is the sorceress Circe, in love with him and rejected, who turns her into a monster by pouring poison into the water where the nymph used to bathe. Virgil, in the Aeneid, has the same warning repeated to Aeneas as he flees Troy: stay out at sea, sail around Sicily rather than risk the direct passage between the two creatures.

The myth crosses the centuries all the way to Dante, who in the Inferno compares the whirling of the greedy and the wasteful among the damned to the waves that clash above Charybdis. These pages also gave rise to a saying still used today, “caught between Scylla and Charybdis”, for anyone forced to choose between two equally serious dangers, with no clean way out.

Behind the myth: the real currents of the Strait and the Fata Morgana

Behind the mythological tale lies a real, still measurable phenomenon. The Strait of Messina connects the Tyrrhenian and Ionian seas, two bodies of water with slightly different levels and temperatures: at every change of tide, water is forced hard from one basin to the other, and the current speeds up at the narrowest point of the channel. Local fishermen call these flows rema montante and rema scendente, accompanied by whirlpools and eddies clearly visible on the surface: it was these swirls, treacherous for the oar- and sail-powered boats of antiquity, that inspired the figure of Charybdis.

The narrowest point of the channel, less than two miles across, lies between Punta Pezzo, just above Villa San Giovanni, and the Sicilian coast at Ganzirri and Torre Faro: it is off that beach that tradition still places the whirlpool of Charybdis today. On days of dead calm, the Strait also produces the Fata Morgana, the mirage that lifts and distorts the opposite coast as if it were a city suspended over the water.

The village of Scilla: the Castello Ruffo and the Chianalea quarter

The place of the myth now has a precise name and face. The village of Scilla stands at the southern tip of the Costa Viola, on the very rock that tradition pointed to as the monster's lair. Towering over the rocky spur is the Castello Ruffo: built as a Basilian fortification around the ninth century, passed to the Ruffo family of Calabria in the thirteenth century and turned into a noble residence in the sixteenth, it still carries at its summit the lighthouse built in 1913. From up here the view runs straight to Sicily and Etna, the best spot to picture the route of Ulysses' ship.

At the foot of the rock lies Chianalea, the fishermen's quarter, its houses built right at the water's edge, so close to the sea that on days of libeccio wind the waves reach up to the windows. It is the oldest heart of Scilla, the best place to look up at the village from below, with boats drawn up on dry land between one doorway and the next.

Swordfish and the walkways: a living legacy of the myth

The Strait remains treacherous today, though in a different way from the one told in the myth: from April to September, when swordfish rise to the surface to breed, fishermen from Scilla and the Sicilian fishing villages hunt them with feluche, boats fitted with a mast up to twenty metres tall from which a lookout spots the shoals and guides the helmsman toward the target. It is a technique passed down through generations, without bait: only sighting, pursuit and harpoon, with fishing grounds assigned each season by lottery among the Calabrian and Sicilian crews.

The metal walkways still visible along Scilla's seafront were the lookout posts on land, a direct echo of the hunt taking place offshore. Swordfish reaches the tables of the village fresh the same day it is caught, and has become the dish that defines Scilla: from grilled fillets to the rolled swordfish sandwich sold at the kiosks by the harbour.

How to get there

By car, the exit from the A2 Mediterranean motorway is the Scilla exit, a few hundred metres from the centre: from there the SS18 road runs along the Costa Viola towards Bagnara and Palmi to the north, and towards Villa San Giovanni and Reggio Calabria to the south. By train, Scilla station lies on the Tyrrhenian line between Battipaglia and Reggio Calabria, with direct connections from Naples and Rome.

The nearest airport is Reggio Calabria, about 30 km away, just over half an hour by car along the A2. Lamezia Terme airport, with more national and international connections, is about 110 km away, an hour and a quarter's drive on the same motorway. Ferries also leave from Villa San Giovanni for Messina, crossing today in around twenty minutes the same stretch of sea told in the myth.

What to see nearby on the Costa Viola

Anyone following the myth along the coast finds other vantage points onto the same seascape. The Costa Viola takes its name from the violet colour the sea turns at sunset, reflected on the rocks, and stretches from Palmi to Villa San Giovanni: a natural balcony over the Strait with several viewpoints besides Scilla itself.

A few kilometres to the north, Favazzina marks the start of the wildest stretch of coast, where the railway and the main road run cantilevered over the rock. On the Sant'Elia headland, the spots used for birdwatching on the Strait let you follow, during the spring migrations, the birds of prey crossing the channel right above the waters once attributed to Scylla and Charybdis. Further north, the village of Bagnara Calabra adds another seafaring stop, with its own tradition of swordfish fishing.

Where to stay: holiday homes on the Costa Viola

Following the myth of Scylla and Charybdis along the coast means moving very little and stopping often: the village, the castle, Chianalea and the viewpoints over the Strait are all just a few kilometres apart, but the best light comes in the evening, once the day-trippers have already left. To experience it this way, it's worth staying nearby, and a holiday home offers a freedom no hotel can match: your own kitchen for the fish bought that morning, no fixed hours, room for a group or a family.

Our homes on the Costa Viola, between Scilla, Bagnara and Palmi, range from two-room apartments to larger flats with several bedrooms, many just minutes from the sea and from the viewpoints over the Strait. Check availability for your dates and send us a direct request: we'll help you choose the right home for your stay.

Frequently asked questions about the myth of Scylla and Charybdis

Where are Scylla and Charybdis really located in the Strait of Messina?
Tradition places Scylla on the rock of the Calabrian village that bears her name, and Charybdis in the whirlpool off Torre Faro, on the Sicilian shore.

Why is the Strait of Messina dangerous for navigation?
Because tidal currents, driven by the difference between the Tyrrhenian and Ionian seas, speed up at the narrowest point, forming whirlpools visible on the surface.

Where is the best place in Scilla to picture the myth?
From the Castello Ruffo, on the rock above the village, and from the seafront below the castle, with views of the Sicilian coast and Etna on the clearest days.

When can you see swordfish fishing in the Strait?
Between April and September, when the feluche boats go out for the fishing season; the catch reaches Scilla's tables the same day.

Can Chianalea be visited together with the Castello Ruffo?
Yes, they are a few minutes' walk apart: from the castle's rock, a path leads down to the fishermen's quarter, its houses built right at the water's edge.

What does the saying “between Scylla and Charybdis” mean?
Being caught between two equally serious dangers, with no risk-free choice: the phrase comes from Homer's tale, later taken up by Virgil and Dante.

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