The sound of ruins and the presumption of their silence

A visit to ruins often raised and still raises the emotion of silence and, therefore, the idea that ancient spaces implicate the possibility of reflection and abstraction from the noise of reality and contemporaneity. The present contribution specifically focuses on the silent descriptions of ancient ruins and the related emotions which travellers experience, pointing to the difference of descriptions of ancient places and cities – before they became ruins – made by the people living therein. Travellers experience the same places from a different perspective adding feelings and emotions that not always – one could even argue never – correspond to the experience and emotions of past people living those same places that surely were not silent, at least not always and at any time, and with such a romantic and meditative atmosphere.