Erice, an ancient village in Western Sicily, overlooking the Trapani lagoon, linked its ancient history to the cult of Venus Ericina. During the Middle Ages and up to the eighteenth century, it hosted numerous convents. These, from the seventies of the last century, on the initiative of the physicist Antonino Zichichi, have been transformed into venues dedicated to international meetings and residencies, centered around the prestigious Ettore Majorana Center for Scientific Culture. In recent years a cable car has connected Mount Erice to the city of Trapani - already and still accessible via a very panoramic but dizzying road - thus also inserting the village into the flow of holiday tourism. However, these reflections remain dedicated to the silent and fraternal places where some of the most brilliant scientific minds, on an almost regular basis, meet to debate issues that concern the unknown essence of matter, in which and for which we live.