Art, history, tradition in Sicily

A Brief Historical Sketch from the VIII century B.C. until today

In the background old marbled papers (Ebru) from Tagliavia’s collectionTraditional Sicilian songs in the sound track

20000 B.C.

Graffiti in Addaura Caves near Palermo

Paleolitic caves all around Europe remind us our common origin

Lascaux - France

Altamira - Cantabria

Carretto siciliano

Phoenicians came from today’s LebanonIn 734 BC they founded Palermo, which was allready existing as a town of an

autocton population, the Sicani.

Solunto

Festa dei pani di S. Giuseppe in Salemi (Trapani)

Temple E in Selinunte (VII BC)

Doric Temple in Segesta (V BC)

Greek Theatre in Segesta (III BC)

Ballo della cordella in Petralia

Roma (241 BC- 440)

• I Vandali (440- 493)

Gli Ostrogoti (493-555)

Bisanzio (535-827)

A typical instrument

The Arabs

Arab-islamic domination in Sicily started with the landing of Muslims from North Africa in Mazara del Vallo in 827 and lasted until 1091.

Tarantella siciliana

The Normands (1060 – 1194)They came in Sicily as mercenary knights in

help of Byzantines who were trying to conquer again Sicily from Arabs whose internal power was in crisis.

Palazzo dei Normanni

Zisa Castle (al-’Azīza = magnificent)

Arab and Byzantines architects and artisans contributed to create a style named arab-normand

The Svevi (The Hohenstaufen, a German dinasty) (1185 – 1266)

Enrico VI of Hohenstaufen and his grave in the Cathedral of Palermo

Traditional dresses

Federico II

Meeting the Sultan Al-Malik al-Kamil

De arte venandi cum avibus treatise

Many castels were build to establish a strong centralized authority

Turiddu, a typical character

The Angioini (French) (1266 – 1282)

Pietro III d'Aragona lands in Trapanimanoscritto, Biblioteca Vaticana

Statue of Charles I at the Royal Palace, Naples.

Palazzo Steri - 1307

Sicilian Flag

It was perhaps in the Aragonese period that the sicilian flag was conceived.

Cows dressed during the celebration in honour of Jesus Nazarenus in S. Giovanni Gemini (Agrigento)

The Aragonese (1282 -1513)

During the Spanish domination (which lasted five centuries) Sicily was sometimes directly dependent by the King of Spain and sometimes was governed by a vice-king

Gotico catalano

Palazzo Ajutamicristo 1495-1501 Southern portal of the Cathedral

1453

Chiesa di S. Maria della Catena 1490-1520

Trifora in the Archibishop Palace

Carrying water

Gli Spagnoli (Spanish Augsburg ) (1516 – 1713)

I quattro canti o Teatro del Sole

Traditional dresses of Piana degli Albanesi

The Savoia (1713 – 1718) and the Austrian Augsburg ( 1718 – 1734)

Charles VI, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire

Easter dresses in Piana degli Albanesi

I Borboni (1734 – 1860)Borbone is a family of regnants, originally from Spain and

France which held many kingdoms in Italy

Rivolts in 1848 in Palermo

1756 – Palazzo S. Elia

Palazzina cinese - 1799

Holy week in Enna

Giuseppe GaribaldiThe so-called “Two worlds eroe” leaded one thousand people (i Mille), to conquer Sicily and join it to the Savoy kingdom of Piemonte.The new Italian Kingdom was born in 1860.

The red shirts of the soldiers of Garibaldi are figthing in Palermo (Giovanni Fattori, Garibaldi in Palermo, 1860-1862, Oil on canvas)

Teatro Massimo - 1897

Paintings of the ceiling of the opera hall

Liberty

Palazzo Dato - 1906 Chiosco Ribaudo - 1916

Holy cross procession in Monreale

Allied army lands in Sicily

General Patton in Palermo welcomes gen. Montgomery on July 28° 1943 at the airport

9 – 10 luglio 1943

Il carro di Santa Rosalia