Castello Ursino, Catania

Our next stop for today was the Castello Ursino. Also known as the Castello Svevo di Catania, it is a castle built in the 13th century as a royal castle of the Kingdom of Sicily and is mostly known for its role in the Sicilian Vespers when it became the seat of the Sicilian Parliament. Built between 1230 and 1250, it is one of the few buildings to survive the earthquake of 1693. When the castle was first built, it was on a cliff looking out to sea, however as the result of volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes, it is now a kilometre inland.

The Museo Civico opened in the restored castle in 1934 and it now houses artefacts and artwork from the castle as well as the greater geographical area. It is home to the valuable archaeological collection of the Biscoris, Catania’s most important aristocratic family, and includes colossal classical sculptures, Greek vases, some fine mosaics and some very interesting paintings. We were quite surprised at how vivid the colours still are today but what surprised us the most was the gruesome themes in a lot of the paintings. The artists certainly were a macabre lot.

This is a pretty cool looking castle with part of its moat still intact, although today it is a green space filled with cats and kittens. The museum space inside is modern but it has been restored in such a way that parts of the old castle blend perfectly with the newer structure. The courtyard appears to be the only place that has not been touched as it is fairly empty but for some broken ancient pots and columns in disrepair, and I even loved photographing this space too.Read more