The Capuana Palace in Mineo

Luigi Capuana, writer and one of the most illustrious exponents of Italian Verismo, was born in Mineo, in the province of Catania, in 1839. Even today his home, Christmas , as well as the family home for a long time, is perfectly preserved and has become the seat of the museum dedicated to him. Here, then, for all fans of his works, the information necessary to visit the Palazzo Capuana in Mineo.

The history of Palazzo Capuana in Mineo

Luigi Capuana was born on May 28, 1839 in Mineo, in the residence of his parents who are the bourgeois Gaetano Capuana and Dorotea Ragusa. The family, originally from Mineo, has numerous land possessions and for this reason they also hold important political offices (Luigi himself will be mayor of the village twice), so the residence reflects the role of its members in society.

Although in the following years the writer then preferred to move first to Catania to continue his studies, then in various Italian cities to follow his political and literary interests, the residence, since its foundation known as Capuana Palace , remained the property of the family and the parents of the man of letters lived here until their death.

Here also lived Capuana's two uncles, Antonio and Mimì, who played an important part in the boy's education, especially as regards his Garibaldian ideas . The palace was also his official residence when, in 1868 and after a long stay in Florence, the writer decided to return to Sicily, also to be close to his father who in the meantime had fallen seriously ill and died shortly after.

Architecture and works of art present at Palazzo Capuana in Mineo

The Palazzo Capuana in Mineo is a building of two floors made according to the purest Sicilian neoclassical style. It has two entrances, one main which faces directly onto Via Capuana and the other which leads onto Via Romano. At the main entrance, on the right side of the door, there is a plaque which reminds us that the great writer was born in that place: the targa it was placed during fascism by Commendatore Blandini who was a great admirer of him as well as a scholar of the author of Mineo.

Today Palazzo Capuana, after a partial restoration work, is the seat of several cultural activities , in particular the writer's house museum and the civic library. The area dedicated to the House Museum collects paintings, furniture, objects and above all books and writings that belonged to Capuana. Also preserved are the writer's papers , in particular a collection of letters that he exchanged with some greats of the time such as Verga, Pirandello, D'Annunzio, Zola, Ibsen and Balzac.

Of notable interest is the so-called studiolo that Luigi himself furnished with some prints taken from the magazines of the time and framed by Capuana himself. On the ground floor of the structure, however, there is the Civic library which collects in particular the 1918 volumes in Esperanto that were part of the private collection of the prefect Rizzo, a lover of the language.

What you can do around Palazzo Capuana in Mineo

In addition to visiting Palazzo Capuana in Mineo, a trip to this town allows you to admire much more, since it is a particularly rich area from both a historical and cultural point of view. A little-known gem, for example, is that of the early Christian basilica of San Giovanni dating back to the XNUMXth century AD

It is a very particular construction as it was really small and not structured to accommodate the faithful who instead attended the functions in the external part, given that the basilica is surrounded by arches which were closed by wooden doors which were opened on the occasion of the celebrations .
even the Castle of Serravalle it is not to be missed: built for the first time around 1200, the structure was equipped with a very high medieval tower, in order to better control the road that came from Catania. Finally, there is the church of Santa Maria Maggiore whose original structure dates back to the third century, even built on a pagan temple dedicated to the God of the Sun, Apollo.

How to get to Mineo

The locality of Mineo can be easily reached by auto from Catania. From here, in fact, it is sufficient to take the SS. 417 following the signs for Gela, then continue on the SP. 181 and finally arrive at your destination.
The route is obviously longer if you come from Palermo as you must first follow the A19 motorway to Catania and then at the Gerbini junction continue on the SP. 192. At that point, take the SS. 417 and you reach Mineo.

If, on the other hand, you want to travel by train , it is good to bear in mind that Mineo does not have its own railway station as the one that does exist is in disuse, so you must refer to the closest station which is that of Grammichele, about 7 km away, and then continue with a local service bus. Finally, it is also possible to get to Mineo by bus from the main Sicilian cities such as Palermo, Catania, Messina and Ragusa.

© Charles Blangiforte, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons