These catacombs contained a preservative that helped to
mummify the dead. Sicilians, from nobles to peasants were buried here in the
19th century. There are about 8,000 mummified remains buried here, the oldest
corpses are from the late 16th century.
In 1920, the last person was laid to rest here, a little girl almost lifelike
in death. Many 19th-century Sicilians are in fine shape, considering--with
eyes, hair, and even clothing fairly intact. This is not an attraction for the
faint of heart or for small children.
The Sicilian Regional Gallery
This Gallery houses paintings completed in Sicily
between the 11th and the 17th centuries, Arabic
inlaid-wood objects, Moorish pottery and some marble sculptures. The gallery
has a wonderful collection of Sicilian sculpture and paintings from the 13th to
the 18th centuries. The main floor has most of the sculptures on display and as
one wanders through the former chapel one will see the gallery’s most famous
work, dating from 1449, the “Triumph of the Death”, which has sometimes been
credited to Pisanello. There is also on display the white-marble bust of
Eleanara di Aragona by Francesco Laurana, his masterpiece, which he created in
the 15th century.
Regional Archaeological Museum
This Museum is located in the
ex-abbey of the Philippine Monks and is home to a large number of artifacts
from the whole of Sicily. It
includes archaeological finds from the Etruscan, Phoenician and Greek eras.
These important collections are testimony of Sicilian art, from prehistoric
times to the late Roman period. Especially
interesting pieces in this small but excellent collection are the examples of
prehistoric cave drawings and a marvelously reconstructed Doric frieze from the
Greek temple at Selinunte. The frieze reveals the high level of artistic
culture attained by the Greek colonists in Sicily some 2,500 years ago.