FICARAZZI
Ficarazzi
is a town of some 8,000 inhabitants located in the Palermo province
at some 23m asl. It appears as a collection of picturesque brick
or white coloured houses grouped around the Torre and surrounded
by lemon and orange groves.
After
hosting a Cretan community and successively a Punic one, the area
of the modern day’s Ficarazzi followed the vicissitudes of
the neighboring Misilmeri Barony, into which it was assimilated
for a longtime. Later on, the holding was divided between the Ajutamicristo
family and Vice-King Pietro Speciale, the latter contributing to
establishing the sugar-cane cultivation in the area and undertaking
the construction of the town Tower, that would become his residence.
The Torre, dated 1458, was modified in the 18th century by the Giardina
family.
Among
the town lords were the Theatine Fathers and, since 1733, when the
city was properly founded, the Marquis Luigi Giardina de Guevara.
The
Torre-Villa is the city’s main attraction. Notably, the addition
of a wing, the entrance double staircase, some halls and front balconies,
is due to the Giardinas, as above said. Following a number of ownership
changes, the building passed to the Theatine nuns who opened a nursery
school inside.
The
aqueduct, built by Pietro Campo and supplying the sugar-cane plantation,
is also of 1400’s origin. Its original structure, spanning
the Eleuterio river, is preserved almost intact.
The
1700’s Chiesa Madre dedicated to Sant’Atanasio has a
linear front and a simple interior with a single nave preserving
some interesting works such as a 1500’s wooden Crucifix.
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