NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Castelbuono

Castelbuono is a town and commune in the province of Palermo, Sicily (southern Italy). It is especially famous for the castle which its name derives, and around which the city grew up in the 14th century. Palermo (It. ... Sicilian redirects here. ... This 14th-century statue from south India depicts the gods Shiva (on the left) and Uma (on the right). ...

History

Construction of the Castle began in 1316, by order of Count Francesco I of Ventimiglia, over the ruins of the ancient Byzantine town of Ypsigro, high on the San Pietro hill. Hence its original name, Castello del buon aere ("Castle of good air"), from which the name Castelbuono is derived - literally meaning "good castle". A view of Ventimiglia, Liguria, Italy. ... Byzantine Empire (Greek: Î’Ï…Î¶Î±Î½Ï„Î¹Î½Î® Î‘Ï…Ï„Î¿ÎºÏÎ±Ï„Î¿ÏÎ¯Î±) is the term conventionally used since the 19th century to describe the Greek-speaking Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ...

Numerous drastic alterations were made in the 17th century. for reasons of accommodation, when a number of Ventimiglia families moved here from Palermo - the castle never served any really strategic purpose, owing to its geographic position down valley. (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ...

Main sights

The Castle

The construction of the Castle mixes Arab-Norman features with others typical of the castles built during the Hohenstaufen rule of southern Italy: the cube shape recalls Arabic architecture; the square towers, although incorporated into those of the façade, reflect Norman architectural style, as also the battlements; and the round tower recalls aspects of Frederick II's times architecture. Arms of the Hohenstaufen The Hohenstaufen were a dynasty of Kings of Germany, many of whom were also crowned Holy Roman Emperor and Dukes of Swabia. ... A cube [1] (or regular hexahedron) is a three-dimensional Platonic solid composed of six square faces, facets or sides, with three meeting at each vertex. ... Arabic can mean: From or related to Arabia From or related to the Arabs The Arabic language; see also Arabic grammar The Arabic alphabet, used for expressing the languages of Arabic, Persian, Malay ( Jawi), Kurdish, Panjabi, Pashto, Sindhi and Urdu, among others. ... The Parthenon on top of the Acropolis, Athens, Greece Architecture (from Latin, architectura and ultimately from Greek, Î±ÏÏ‡Î¹Ï„ÎµÎºÏ„Ï‰Î½, a master builder, from Î±ÏÏ‡Î¹- chief, leader and Ï„ÎµÎºÏ„Ï‰Î½, builder, carpenter) is the art and science of designing buildings and structures. ...

The structure is on three floors, the first floor for the servants, with the essential services, the second for the nobility, with the sumptuous Cappella Palatina, and the third for the court and for guests.

The Cappella Palatina ("Palace Chapel") was built in 1683 by the brothers Giuseppe and Giacomo Serpotta, with a great profusion of precious marble, stuccowork, putti, and friezes that commemorate the most resplendent moments in the history of the House of Chiaramonte. Here is kept the holy relic of the skull of St Ann, in an urn that acts as the pedestal to the sculpted bust of Castelbuono's patron saint. Events June 6 - The Ashmolean Museum opens as the worlds first university museum. ... A relic is an object, especially a piece of the body or a personal item of someone of religious significance, carefully preserved with an air of veneration as a tangible memorial, Relics are an important aspect of Buddhism, some denominations of Christianity, Hinduism, shamanism, and many other personal belief systems. ... St. ... In several forms of the church of Christianity, but especially in Roman Catholicism, a patron saint has special affinity for a trade or group. ...

There are also the traditional underground dungeons and a tunnel that leads to the Church of San Francesco.

Other sites

The church of Madrice Vecchia was built in the 14th century on the ruins of a pagan temple. It has a Renaissance portico added in the 1500s, and a central portal in the Catalan-Gothic style. On the left side is a bell-tower with a fine Romanesque mullioned window culminating in an octagonal spire covered with majoilica tiles. The interior of the church, originally divided into a nave and two aisles, received another aisle at the end of the 15th century. It preserves prized works, most remarkably, above the main altar, a splendid polyptych depicting The Coronation of the Virgin , attributed to Pietro Ruzzolone or possibly Antonello de Saliba. On the bottom right is the unusual figure of a Saint wearing spectacles. On the right is a statue of the Madonna delle Grazie by Antonello Gagini. Below the nave is a fresco depicting the Betrothal of the Virgins showing a strong Senese influence in the elegant features and the symmetry of the composition. Some of the columns separating the nave and the aisles are painted with frescoes, including the figure of St. Catherine of Alexandria. Pagan may refer to: A believer in Paganism or Neopaganism Bagan, a city in Myanmar also known as Pagan Pagan (album), the 6th album by Celtic metal band Cruachan Pagan Island, of the Northern Mariana Islands Pagan Lorn, a metal band from Luxembourg, Europe (1994-1998) Pagans Mind, is... In the traditional view, the Renaissance is understood as a historical age that was preceded by the Middle Ages and followed by the Reformation. ... A polyptych (from the Greek polu- many + ptychÄ“ fold) generally refers to a painting (usually panel painting) which is divided into four or more sections, or panels. ... Antonello Gagini (1478-1536); was a Sicilian sculptor. ...

External links

Sicily · Communes of the province of Palermo

Contents

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Main sights

The Castle

Other sites

External links

History