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Palazzolo Acreide - Siracusa
The commune of Palazzolo Acreide with about 9.000 inhabitants, is situated in Sicily, in the province of Siracusa; near we can visit the communes of Buscemi, Cassaro, Floridia, Noto, Siracusa, Solarino, Sortino e Canicattini Bagni in the province of Siracusa e Giarratana in the province of Ragusa.Palazzolo Acreide was the first colony founded by Syracuse, with the name of Akrai in 664 b.C. 'Civitas stipendiaria' under the rule of Rome the town still existed in the paleochristian period and was probably destroyed by the Saracens in 827 a.D. We have the first news of the present centre from the 12th century when with the name of 'Placeolum' it appeared in Pope Alexander IIìs bull in 1169. In the 13th century Frederick II gave it in fee to Alberto Pallavicino. Half destroyed by the 1693 earthquake, it was rebuilt over the ruins keeping in part the ancient medieval street disposition with numerous multi-family courtyards. From the 17th century to 1812 it was principality of the Ruffos of Sicily. When in 2003, UNESCO decided to make some communes in the Val di Noto World Heritage, the inspectors must have had not a little difficulty in deciding which ones could be put on the list. There are so many wonderful treasures scattered around in small and big villages in the Iblei. But for some places the choice must have been more or less mandatory: Palazzolo Acreide is one of these. Avenues lined with richly adorned buildings (the splendid Palazzo Judica, Palazzo Ferla, with the corbels of the balconies carved in the shapes of animals, Palazzo Zocco and Palazzo Caruso, on whose façade there stand out unusual monstrous figures that according to popular belief kept away adversity and the evil eye), very beautiful churches like San Sebastiano, with the three levels of the façade high above a flight of steps that starts from the piazza of the town hall, and that of the rival saint Paul, both enchanting baroque buildings, and Annunziata, slightly subdued in a small piazza, the stately portal of twisted columns on which there wind turgid shoots as a sign of good luck. And if it is true that its 'nomination' sprang from the beauty and quantity of baroque buildings, at Palazzolo there is also a magnificent archaeological area, the ancient Akrai, which was the first colony founded by the Syracusans (664 BC) in their phase of expansion towards the inland part of Sicily. Here the main monument is the theatre, a perfect stone hemicycle from the 2nd century BC where every year the International Festival of Young People's Classical Theatre is held. Behind it there are two stone quarries in which one can make out the traces of the cult of the heroes of the Greek epoch. From here a short walk takes you to the small valley in which the rough sculptures have been recovered that are known as Santoni ('big saints'), figures that refer to the cult of the Magna Mater: the complex of sculptures is the biggest of the kind that has come down to us. Lastly, for those who are interested in folk traditions, Palazzolo holds a true treasure in store: the Museum House of Antonino Uccello contains a rich collection of objects and utensils of daily life in the past, collected with passion by the Palazzolo anthropologist. Fonte: Valle degli Iblei Visitare Palazzolo AcreideThe Greek Theatre in Palazzolo Acreide. Dating back to the 3rd century b.C., it was rehashed in Roman times. Of small but graceful dimensions, it still has the cavea, the flooring of the orchestra and remains of the stage. West of the theatre it is possible to admire the remains of a very small Bouleuterion, that was the seat of the town senate. New excavations have brought to light a decumanus belonging to the town destroyed by the Arabs. Intagliata and Intagliatella in Palazzolo Acreide. Behind the theatre open two Latomias (stone quarries) of Greek age: Intagliata the wide and curved one and Intagliatella the narrow and deep one. In Byzantine days they were used as houses and necropolis to which the charachteristic baldachin sepulchres, closed by scroll-worked transennas, are a witness. In the Intagliatella a rupestrian relief is emerged with the scenes of the sacrificing Hero and of the banqueting Hero. Contrada Pinita at Palazzolo Acreide. It is possible to admire the necropolis made up by 54 graves dating back to the 12th century b.C., one of the oldest in Sicily. Contrada Santa Lucia at Palazzolo Acreide. There is a small hypogean church with a sacred spring of paleochristian age and a rupestrian Byzantine basilica. The Santoni in Palazzolo Acreide. Some very old 3rd century b.C. reliefs cut out from the rock, called 'The Santoni', appear very suggestive. They are consacrated to the cult of Cybele and they represent the gaddess seated, flanked by lions and often by other figures. Many of the found antiques, as Siculian medals and coins, bronzes, pottery, are kept in the Syracuse National Museum. The Church of San Sebastiano in Palazzolo Acreide. It stands in the central Piazza del Popolo (Popolo Square), it dates back to 1609 and has an elaborate Baroque facade on a high flight of steps. The Church of the Immacolata in Palazzolo Acreide. It is interesting from an artistic point of view because it keeps a Madonna and Child by Francesco Laurana, dating to the 15th century. The Antonino Uccello House-Museum in Palazzolo Acreide. It contains an interesting collection of Sicilian ethnographical material. Palazzo Iudica in Palazzolo Acreide. Dating back to the 18th century, it kept an interesting collection of Acrense antiques that are now partly in Lentini and partly in Syracuse and that in future will be exhibited in the Museo Acrense. Anapo Valley at Palazzolo Acreide. The valley, formed by the homonymous river, partially declared nature reserve, offers the visitor 'green and archaeology' in suggestive and intact sorroundings. The Mediterranean bush predominates there and in the valley bottom the planes grow. The fauna is very rich: the eagle-owl, the Bonelli eagle, the weasel, the river crab, the fox and other magnificient specimens. The Bauli Wood at Palazzolo Acreide. It is a natural ilex-, oak-, bay oak- and poplar-wood not very far from Palazzolo. Itinerary Ancient Akray. The new panoramic road turning around the Acremonte the hill on which the ancient Greek city extended, offers the starting-point for a relaxing and at the same time interesting walk from the cultural point of view. The visit starts from the ruins of the Greek theatre and of the Bouleuterion, the meeting-place of the council, going on it is possible to admire the foundation of the archaic temple of Aphrodite, the latomie dell'Intagliata and dell'Intagliatella with rupestrian reliefs and little tables, hypogea and little catacombs of Christian-Byzantine age and finally the Templi Ferali of Hellenistic age. How Palazzolo Acreide can be reached. From the provincial road that from Syracuse leads to Sortino and then to Palazzolo Acreide. By bus from Syracuse, Ragusa and from the other nearby towns. The nearest railway station is the one of Pachino (line SR-CL) from which is about 20 Km away. Hotel B&B Palazzolo Acreide
Official website: http://www.comune.palazzoloacreide.sr.it
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Siracusa - B&B Agorà
