Sicilian Baroque

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An ornate treasure hidden behind an unassuming facade

In south-eastern Sicily, towns sit precipitously on hillsides, the buildings clinging like barnacles. Following an earthquake in 1639, the area was completely rebuilt in the Sicilian baroque style. As a result, the region is defined by the ostentatious and ornate architecture; in each town the buildings are like clusters of old-fashioned wedding cakes. But it’s not just the exteriors that are eye-catching. Hidden behind unassuming facades and otherwise plain-looking doors, lie these hidden frescoed jewels.

“the region is defined by the ostentatious and ornate architecture; in each town the buildings are like clusters of old-fashioned wedding cakes.”

In much the same way as the exterior, the interior plasterwork also brings to mind the delicate icing on a wedding cake. In this particular palazzo, these rooms were used as a private chamber in which to indulge the pleasures of the flesh, and so the images depict some of the raunchier scenes from mythology, such as Leda and the swan. But even when used for a more prosaic purpose, these rooms still achieve a stirring of a different emotion: awe.

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