Page 54 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Sicily

52  P ALERMO AREA B Y AREA

Street-by-Street: Around Piazza Marina

The main square in Old Palermo lies at the edge of the Kalsa
quarter. From the Middle Ages onwards it was used for knights’
tournaments, theatre performances, markets and public
executions. On the occasion of royal weddings, such as the PALERMO
EAST
marriage of Charles II and Marie Louise in 1679, impressive shows WEST
were put on in specially built wooden theatres. The square’s PALERMO
irregular four sides are flanked by such monuments as Palazzo
Steri-Chiaramonte, Palazzo del Castillo, Palazzo della Zecca,
San Giovanni dei Napoletani, Palazzo della Gran Guardia, Santa Locator Map
Maria della Catena, Palazzo Galletti and Palazzo Villafiorita. In the See Street Finder map 2
middle is the Giardino Garibaldi, shaded by enormous fig trees.

0 metres 60
0 yards 60
C O R S O V I T T O R I O E M A N U E L E

P I A Z Z A M A R I N A

Santa Maria della Catena (early 16th century)
owes its name to the chain (catena) across the
mouth of the city harbour. A broad stairway
leads to the beautiful three-arched porch of
this Catalan Gothic church.

Santa Maria dei Miracoli

1 Piazza Marina
This is one of the largest squares in Palermo.
Once part of the harbour, but long since
silted up and reclaimed, its central garden Key
is home to massive Ficus magnolioides trees,
with strange, exposed roots. Suggested route
For hotels and restaurants in this area see p202 and pp210–11

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