Church of San Giovanni Battista in Misilmeri

La San Giovanni Battista church in Misilmeri it represents a magnificent building built during the Renaissance period, it is famous for the presence of the wooden statue of the Immaculate Conception with silver cloths made during the eighteenth century by a famous local artist.

The church of San Giovanni Battista in Misilmeri

The main monument present on the territory of the town of Misilmeri in province of Palermo and the church of San Giovanni Battista.

It is a structure built in 1553 thanks to the interest of the Baron of Misilmeri, a certain Don Vincenzo Del Bosco who made sure that the necessary resources for the work were made available. To complete the work of building what would become the Mother Church of Misilmeri, it took 31 years.

It is an important building not only from an architectural and artistic point of view, but also from a historical and cultural point of view because in thearchive almost become legendary in the church of San Giovanni Battista Misilmeri are kept all the registers that tell of baptisms, marriages and deceased people who have followed one another from 1625 until today.

Like many other buildings in the province and in any case in Sicily, the mother church too underwent restoration and restructuring interventions, certainly the most important of which was carried out in 1883 which finally put an end to a problem linked to water infiltration due to the presence of a source. From an architectural point of view, the structure has a beautiful facade with two bell towers not too high and with awide staircase which further emphasizes the entrance and puts the splendid central rose window in the foreground. Over the years, other renovations have taken place, such as the one in 1951, which made it possible to discover a basement of the church under the access stairway in which niches defined and decorated with majolica tiles have been found.

The works of art of the Church of San Giovanni Battista Misilmeri

In mother church of Misilmeri there are many important works among which undoubtedly the most important is the wooden statue depicting the Immaculate Conception with a completely silver dress. It is a structure built in 1734.
Furthermore, another work by local artists is appreciable, in particular a Via Crucis obtained on slate and completed in 1767.
Of note in the area of ​​the naves is the presence of a painting always depicting the Immaculate Conception and dating back to the XNUMXth century, while the altarpiece is the result of the work of the Italian painter Vito D'Anna which for many is certainly the best interpreter of what was the Palermitan rococo. Also not to be missed is a completely silver urn containing the relics of San Giusto. According to scholars this particular work of art could have been created in the early seventeenth century by a certain Pietro Novelli.

What to see in Misilmeri

Misilmeri is a Sicilian town which in recent decades has grown exponentially in terms of the number of inhabitants, exceeding 28 units. The history of the town begins in Roman times and it had a moment of great importance above all because in this territory there was a decisive battle which allowed the Normans to conquer all of Sicily. Among the most important architectures to visit, the church of Maria Santissima Annunziata, Church of San Francesco d'Assisi, Church of the Holy Souls while among the civil structures they deserve a separate mention the Castle of the Emir built during the Arab and Norman periods.

How to get to Misilmeri

By car, to get to Misilmeri starting from Messina, a journey of about 222 km is necessary via the A20 and E90 motorways for a duration that, net of traffic situations, is around 2 hours and 30 minutes. Coming from Palermo, on the other hand, the kilometers are only 18 km for a route that first includes the SS113 and then the SS121 for a time frame of 25 minutes.