November 13, 2019
Folk Arts
Puppets became popular in Sicily during the fifteenth century, and marionettes are still considered an important part of Sicilian folk culture. Sicilian puppet theatre (opera dei pupi) or, more properly, “marionette theatre,” developed into its present form in the eighteenth century.
The marionettes themselves are made of wood and cloth with metal accouterments. The puppets are carved, painted and decorated. Sets are painted in the Sicilian folk style with traditional colors, using canvas for the backdrops.
A marionette maker at his craft
Marionette Parts
The Porto Nuovo
The facade leading to the Corso Calatifimi and Piazza Indipendenza presents four big telamones depicting the Moors defeated by Charles V.
The Telemones (Roman) or Atlas (European) figures
According to historians, the original gate was built in the 15th century. After Charles V’s conquest of Tunis, the Emperor came to Sicily. He entered Palermo through this gate on September 5th, 1535. In order to commemorate this event, the Senate of Palermo decreed to rebuild the gate in a grander style
The facade leading to the Cassaro has the typical style of the triumphal arches. The facade leading to the Corso Calatifimi and Piazza Indipendenza is ornamented with four big telamones depicting the Moors defeated by Charles V.
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Ornamentation under the Atlas figures
The Royal Gardens
Some form of garden was added to the Royal palace possibly as far back as the twelfth century and it simply refers to an area enclosed within the walls of the palace. The garden one finds today at the Royal Palace was open to the public in June of 2018, contains a small restaurant and is a respite from the noise of the city.
Ornaments can be found around the garden and are coincidentally sold in the gift shop
Open-Air Markets
These were taken in the Mercato della Vucciria, Palermo’s most famous market immortalized by Renato Guttuso in his painting La Vucciriea. There are two origins as to the name, some say it is a corruption of the french boucherie or butcher, while others suggest the name means the place of loud voices.
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Sicilian cuisine was strongly influenced by the Arabs, who added almonds, aniseed, apricots, artichokes, cinnamon, oranges, pistachio, pomegranates, saffron, sesame, spinach, sugarcane, watermelon and rice to the local palate. The Zibbibo grape used to make Passito di Pantelleria, the supreme Sicilian dessert wine, was also introduced by the Arabs.
For a wonderful rundown on the foods and flavors of Italy, please check out my travel mates blog here.
Fontana Pretoria
The Fontana Pretoria was built by Francesco Camilliani in the city of Florence in 1554 but was transferred to Palermo in 1574.
Between the 18th century and 19th century, the fountain was considered a sort of depiction of the corrupt municipality of Palermo. For this reason and because of the nudity of the statues, the square became known as “Piazza della Vergogna” (Square of Shame). The fountain was restored in 2003.
The fountain is surrounded by whimsical animals
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Quattro Canti
The Quattro Canti was laid out on the orders of the Viceroys between 1608-1620 by Giulio Lasso and Mariano Smiriglio, standing at the crossing of the two principal streets in Palermo, the Via Maqueda and the Corso Vittorio Emanuele.
The piazza is octagonal, four sides being the streets; the remaining four sides are Baroque buildings, the near-identical facades of which contain fountains with statues of the four seasons, the four Spanish kings of Sicily, and of the patroness saints of Palermo, (Christina, Ninfa, Olivia, and Agata). The facades onto the interchange are curved, and rise to four floors; the fountains rise to the height of the second floor, the third and fourth floors contain the statues in niches. At the time the piazza was built, it was one of the first major examples of town planning in Europe.
Walking the Streets
There Is No Border Here -as attested to in several languages
Hand made in any language
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The student band of the Teatro Massimo parading through town on a Saturday
A cat atop a car standing guard
The universal form of transport
Putti atop a fence post
One of four eagles atop the Palazzo delle Aquile (eagle), now the town hall built in the 16th century but radically altered in the 19th.
Sant’Orsola
Skulls adorn the Chiesa de Sant’Orsola inside and out
“Death is real, people shouldn’t be afraid of it, it’s not the end but a new life in the arms of God!” – The Church
Inside Sant’Orsola one can find many skeletons
That’s why in the fifteenth century popular institutions, such as hospitals or orphanages, began to call on artists to create frescos and paintings about death. Images were the only way to transmit ideals, especially in places where people were unable to read.
Saint’Orsola was built in the early 17th century by the society of St Ursula, known as Dei Negri because of the dark habits the members wore during processions. The late Renaissance façade is decorated with figures of souls in Purgatory and angels. Three skulls lie on the architrave.
Teatro Massimo
Designed by the well-known Italian architect Giovanni Battista Filippo Basile, Teatro Massimo was constructed ten years after its design was approved. Construction began in 1874 on the site of a former monastery and church. When Basile died in 1891, his son, Ernesto assumed responsibility for completing the structure.
Dedicated to King Victor Emanuel II, the Teatro Massimo is the largest opera house in Italy and third-largest in Europe after the Palais Garnier in Paris, and the K. K. Hof-Opernhaus in Vienna.
Galleria delle Vittorie
Built by the Municipality of Palermo, the Galleria delle Vittorie opened in 1935, during Fascist Italy. It was built in the style of other shopping arcades in the country at the time. It sat empty starting in the 1970s until a bar opened on the ground floor in 2018. The roof is still open to the elements.
Vigili di Fuoco
The Vigili del Fuoco of Palermo was commissioned and completed at the height of the Fascist era in the 1930s. It is an example of the Art Deco aesthetic that Il Duce tended to favor in building his New Rome.
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Palermo is Italian to its bones, but before that, it is Sicilian. It is beautiful and alive and absolutely mesmerizing.
While staying in Palermo I stayed at the wonderful Hotel Palazzo Brunaccini. I would recommend it for the location, the staff and the sheer pleasure of staying there. I would also recommend the restaurant, where my friend Susan took a cooking class with the wonderful Chef, Carlo Napoli. You can read about her class, the Ballaro Market and the charming Carlo Napoli here.