 In consequence of this a small town grew up on the spot; and hence Pliny speaks of an "oppidum Scyllaeum"; but it was probably always a small place, and other writers speak only of the promontory.At the present day the rock is still occupied by a fort, which is a post of considerable strength, while a small town (modern Scilla) stretches down the slopes towards the two bays.The distance from the castle to the opposite point of the Sicilian coast, marked by the Torre del Faro, is stated by William Henry Smyth at 6047 yards (c. 5.5 km), or rather less than 3.5 English miles, but the strait afterwards contracts considerably, so that its width between the Punta Pezzo and the nearest point of Sicily does not exceed 3971 yards (c. 3.6 km).