Architecture sights in Sicily
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Scicli
Scicli is full of wonderful baroque architecture - in particular Palazzo Beneventano and Palazzo Fava - and framed by rocky cliffs. It is well off the beaten track and there is seldom another tourist in sight. From here you can head down to Modica Marina (around €2.20, six buses daily) and Sampieri (around €2.50, three buses daily) on the southern coast for long sandy beaches, as well as rocky coves.
Both are popular with the town's youth, with bars and loungers (bed & umbrella for two around €10) on the sand, though there are vast unpopulated areas if you walk along the beaches, where you can be undisturbed by the crowds.
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Chiesa di San Giuliano
The Chiesa di San Giuliano (1738-51), designed by Vaccarini, is about halfway up Via Crociferì. The convex central façade makes for an interesting effect. Further on you'll notice the excavations that have resulted in the whole street being closed off to traffic: here, at the crossroads with Via Antonino di Sangiuliano, a section of the old Roman road and a sizable floor mosaic have been uncovered. You can peer over the boarding to take a look.
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Castello Ursino
If you walk south from Piazza del Duomo, through the impressive Porta Uzeda (built in 1696) and down to Piazza Federico di Svevia, you'll come across the imposing fortifications of the 13th-century Castello Ursino, built by Frederick II. The grim-looking fortress, surrounded by a moat, was once on a cliff top overlooking the sea; following the earthquake of 1693 the whole area to the south was reclaimed by the lava and the castle became landlocked.
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Cathedral
Facing the statue is Catania’s other defence against Mt Etna, St Agata’s cathedral, with its impressive marble facade. Inside the cool, vaulted interior lie the remains of the city’s patron saint, the young virgin Agata, who resisted the advances of the nefarious Quintian (AD 250) and was horribly mutilated. The saint’s jewel-drenched effigy is ecstatically venerated on 5 February in one of Sicily’s largest feste.
reviewed
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D
Palazzo Riccio di Morana
Although the narrow network of streets in Trapani's historic centre is Moorish, the city takes most of its character from the fabulous 18th-century baroque of the Spanish period. A catalogue of examples can be found down the pedestrian Via Garibaldi, most notably the Palazzo Riccio di Morana and Palazzo Fardelle Fontana. The best time to walk down here is in the early evening, when the passeggiata (stroll) is in full swing.
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Chiesa Madre
Of the several churches and other monuments in this small, quiet town, the Chiesa Madre, just inside Porta Trapani, is probably the most interesting by virtue of its campanile (bell tower) with mullioned windows. Built in 1314, the church had its interior, which has a lovely vaulted ceiling, remodelled in the neo-Gothic style in 1865, but the 15th-century side chapels were conserved.
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E
Santuario della Madonna delle Lacrime
Supposedly modelled on the shape of a tear drop, Syracuse's newest landmark building (it opened in 1994 and reaches a height of 102m) is a rather ugly architectural conceit. The cavernous Santuario della Madonna delle Lacrime was commissioned to house a statue of the Virgin that allegedly wept for five days in 1953 and bestowed over 300 miraculous cures within a matter of months.
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F
Santuario dell’Annunziata
Trapani’s major sight is the 14th-century Santuario dell’Annunziata, 4km east of the centre. The Cappella della Madonna, behind the high altar, contains the venerated Madonna di Trapani, thought to have been carved by Nino Pisano.
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G
Syracusan Forum
Near Piazzale Marconi the old Syracusan Forum (Foro Siracusano), once the site of the agora (marketplaces), is now bisected by a number of busy streets and overshadowed by some hideous architecture.
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Ara di Gerone II
West of the Roman amphitheatre is the 3rd-century-BC Ara di Gerone II (Altar of Hieron II). The monolithic sacrificial altar was a kind of giant abattoir where 450 oxen could be killed at one time.
reviewed
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I
Tempio di Apollo
At the entrance to Ortygia lies the Tempio di Apollo, one of the first Greek structures built here. Little remains of the 6th-century BC Doric structure, apart from the bases of a few columns.
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Chiesa di Sant'Agostino
Further west, on Piazzetta Saturno, is the 14th-century Chiesa di Sant'Agostino, its austerity relieved only by its fine Gothic rose window and portal.
reviewed
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Chiesa Madre
Of the several churches and other monuments in this small, quiet town, the Chiesa Madre, just inside Porta Trapani, is probably the most interesting by virtue of its campanile (bell tower) with mullioned windows. Built in 1314, the church had its interior, which has a lovely vaulted ceiling, remodelled in the neo-Gothic style in 1865, but the 15th-century side chapels were conserved.
reviewed
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K
Cathedral
Facing the statue is Catania’s other defence against Mt Etna, St Agata’s cathedral, with its impressive marble facade. Inside the cool, vaulted interior lie the remains of the city’s patron saint, the young virgin Agata, who resisted the advances of the nefarious Quintian (AD 250) and was horribly mutilated. The saint’s jewel-drenched effigy is ecstatically venerated on 5 February in one of Sicily’s largest feste.
reviewed
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L
Cathedral
Facing the statue is Catania’s other defence against Mt Etna, St Agata’s cathedral, with its impressive marble facade. Inside the cool, vaulted interior lie the remains of the city’s patron saint, the young virgin Agata, who resisted the advances of the nefarious Quintian (AD 250) and was horribly mutilated. The saint’s jewel-drenched effigy is ecstatically venerated on 5 February in one of Sicily’s largest feste.
reviewed