Monte Catalfano hosted an important quarry, pictured, of a soft rock composed of volcanic materials such as ash, lava, and magma. This rock is known as Aspra tuff, or “tufa,” in Italian. Down the road from where this photo was taken, the villas of Bagheria such as Palagonia, Cattolica, Butera, Valguarnera, and Spedalotto were constructed from tufa mined from this centuries-old quarry.