In the year 409 B.C., invading Carthaginian forces led by Hannibal Mago swept into what is now Sicily. Up until the attack, the Cave of Cusa had been an important quarry for 150 years. Most of the buildings in the nearby ancient Greek city of Selinunte were constructed from limestone hewn from these pits. 

Desperate to escape the oncoming devastation, the ancient Greek laborers fled the scene, abandoning their tools and carved stones in the process. Today, visitors to this designated Sicilian Archeological Zone can still see roughly 60 blocks of chiseled limestone left behind. The remnants include whole columns that were never transported to their final destination.