Civic Museum of Castelbuono

The origins of the first settlements - dating back to the XNUMXrd millennium BC - in the Castelbuono area date back to the Neolithic era and must be attributed to the Sican people before they were driven out by the Sicels.

today Civic Museum of Castelbuono, also known under the acronym MCC, is a true cultural institution whose purpose is the conservation and enhancement of all the cultural heritage of the territory.

The history of the Civic Museum of Castelbuono

The seat of the Civic Museum of Castelbuono is located inside the fourteenth century Castle of Ventimiglia in Castelbuono. This cultural institution is quite recent since it was founded in 2012 with the aim of promoting all aspects of local culture starting from history to continue with art, religious worship and artistic promotion through permanent exhibitions and temporary events.

The Civic Museum of Castelbuono hosts a significant Archaeological section combined with the reconstruction and historical documentation of the Castle of Ventimiglia as well as several museum sections.

The Castle has a regular square shape characterized by four towers that rise in every corner and inside it is possible to admire the Palatine Chapel embellished by the seventeenth-century stuccos of the Serpottas.

Architecture and any works of art present in the Civic Museum of Castelbuono

On the first floor of the Civic Museum is the Pinacoteca of Modern and Contemporary Art which is based on a donation including 35 works of art including sculptures and canvases ranging from the mid-sixties to the early nineties of the last century by various artists including Schifano, Cagli, Ortega and Bardi.

The museum sections present include the Archaeological one, the Urban planning one, the Sacred Art one as well as the aforementioned Pinacoteca and the Palatine Chapel which is located on the second floor and is dedicated to Sant'Anna. This is the true fulcrum of the Castello dei Ventimiglia, embellished with admirable stuccos dating back to the XNUMXth century such as cherubs and other zoomorphic elements that decorate walls gilded with gold leaves. In the center of the Chapel there is a niche protected by a small gate from where an altar can be seen where a silver reliquary is kept which depicts the bust of Sant'Anna where the skull is kept Patron Saint of Castelbuono.

The Archaeological section describes the evolution of the Ventimiglia Castle thanks to educational panels enriched by evidence of objects found inside the manor during archaeological excavations and restoration works.
As regards the Town planning section this narrates the evolution of the town starting from the XNUMXth century where the architectural developments of the various buildings and monuments of the city are represented.

La section dedicated to Sacred Art it collects paintings, sacred vestments, liturgical texts and works of art in gold, silver and precious stones donated by the people of Castelbuono to the Patron Saint as an ex voto and testify to the faith that has been manifested in honor of Sant'Anna for centuries.

What you can do around the Civic Museum of Castelbuono

After the visit to the Civic Museum of Castelbuono and the Ventimiglia Castle, it is suggested to implement visits to the city to admire the fifteenth-century Fountain of Venus Cyprea in the main street where it was relocated in the early seventeenth century.
Worth a visit is also the Church of Maria Santissima Assunta which is the old Mother Church of Castelbuono and dates back to the fourteenth century even if restorations carried out in the past have shown that the religious building was built on a previous construction of the thirteenth century. After all the alterations, the church presents an interesting mixture of styles ranging from Roman-Gothic to Catalan Gothic to finish with the Chiaramonte composite.

Even the sixteenth century Church of the Nativity of Mary it is worth a stop even if the neoclassical version still existing refers to a rebuilding dating back to 1830 which was necessary to restore the building after it collapsed due to the earthquake.

How is it possible to get to the Civic Museum of Castelbuono

By car:, from Palermo take the A19 Palermo-Catania motorway to Buonfornello in the direction of the A20 Palermo-Messina, exit Castelbuono.
From Messina you have to take the A20 Messina-Palermo motorway and continue on the SS113 up to the crossroads for Castelbuono continuing on the SS286 for 14 km
From Catania instead, take the A19 Catania-Palermo motorway, exit Buonfornello towards the A20 motorway Palermo-Messina, exit Castelbuono.

© Image by User: Matthias Süßen, CC BY-SA 4.0 - Ephems, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons