Early traces of Pompeii date back to the 8th century BC - but it was really in the 6th century BC that the city took off.
Pompeii was then at the intersection of two major powers : the Greeks and the Etruscans.
The Etruscans expanded south from Tuscany.
The Greeks expanded north, settling cities from the south of Italy.
Early Pompeii was Etruscan.
However the Greeks beat the Etruscans in the 5th century.
Pompeii went from being Etruscan to Greek.
This temple is a testimony to this Greek period in Pompeii's history.
There are also traces of Pompeii's Etruscans past - mainly in the form of typical black pottery called bucceri.
The Greek temple was dedicated to the god Apollo - the son of Zeus.
Apollo was god of light, music, dance, poetry, youth...
He was considered the most beautiful and "Greek" of all the gods.