Experience Sicily

Tag: architettura

  • Corinthian Leaves

    These columns from the Baroque facade of the Duomo on Ortigia are in the Corinthian architectural style for a reason. The city of Siracusa, with Ortigia Island as its jewel, was founded in 734 BC as a colony of Corinth, Greece. Over the subsequent centuries, Siracusa became the most important city of Magna Grecia. Corinthian…

  • Balcony in Scicli

    Balcony of Palazzo Porcelli-Battaglia-Veneziano-Sgarlata, Scicli (18th Century); From the Val di Noto, Sicily late Baroque Towns UNESCO World Heritage site.

  • Conservationists at Work

    Conservationists photographed while working in the cloisters of the Cathedral at Monreale. Each of the 228 columns of the cloister are unique, and their restoration requires painstaking detail in order to maintain the integrity of the designs from the early 1200s when the peaceful, square colonnade was constructed.

  • Enchanting Sicily, Day 13: Monumental Massimo

    LIVE from Sicily! | We spent today touring the neighborhoods of Palermo, starting here at Teatro Massimo the largest opera house in Italy and the third largest in Europe after Paris and Vienna. I want to tell you more about our excursion through the city’s lively markets, but after ending today with a private concert…

  • Uh, Luxury “Palace,” not Villa

    You might consider the Villa Romana del Casale in Piazza Armerina the “dark horse” of Sicily’s UNESCO sites. It’s not as well-known as others in Sicily, but once you have seen it, its magnificence and historical significance overshadows your memories of other sites. First off, calling it a villa is really a misnomer because it…

  • Rooms with a View

    Baroque balconies, Caltagirone. 

  • Temple of Harmony

    The magnificent Temple of Concordia is named for a Latin inscription that was found on a dedication marker unearthed in the vicinity of the Valley of the Temples archaeological site–i.e., a marker not associated with the temple; however spirited archaeologists took the text on the marker that said something to the effect of “dedicated to…

  • Temple Interrupted

    Thought to have been built by a Elymian-Sicilian architect who was influenced by Greek colleagues, this Doric temple at Segesta was constructed between 430 and 420 BC. Scholars believe that it never had a roof put on its 36 limestone columns–perhaps the reason why it is so well-preserved. Very little is understood about for what…

  • The Details are in the Doorways of Erice

    When wandering through the streets of Erice, you will come upon charming doorways and residents’ traditional, handmade linens.