A prized small "urban living room" surrounded by the "crown" formed by the Sicani Mountains, Santo Stefano Quisquina certainly deserves a pleasant and relaxing walk during your holidays in Sicily to discover its numerous architectural and naturalistic qualities.
A mild and pleasant climate all year round will cheer you up as you discover Santo Stefano Quisquina, starting from the renowned squares of the municipality in the Agrigento area: on Piazza Castello they overlook the Baronial palace of the Ventimiglia family (precisely the "castle") and the fascinating four basin fountain, of eighteenth-century workmanship; here then Belmonte Square, embellished by the recent restoration, enhances its charm, and is very central Victory Square; also worth seeing Maddalena Square, dominated by the statue of Lorenzo Panepinto, educator, journalist and activist in favor of farmers who paid with his life for his struggles.
Also in the historic center do not miss the valuable Villa Comunale, established at the beginning of the twentieth century. Rich in numerous botanical and tree species, presents a harmonious “avenue of lime trees", as well as spaces suitable for a pleasant and healthy break, thanks also to aequipped area for children.
Religious architecture in Santo Stefano Quisquina
It is above all in the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries that the most important religious architecture in Santo Stefano Quisquina flourished: starting from the XNUMXth century Mother Church, the fulcrum of religious and aggregative life, where important pictorial works are preserved, in addition to the silver reliquary bust of the Palermo school with some relics of St. Rosalia; the small church of is adjacent St. Francis de Sales, also known as "Oratory of the Five Wounds”: it is among the oldest churches of Santo Stefano Quisquina, as it was built in 1580; date instead to 1708 is the Church of S. Antonio Abate, also called Church of the Purgatory, characterized by a single nave and embellished with sixteenth and seventeenth century works. The adjacent building is also eighteenth century College of Mary, which is also a religious-themed museum with paintings and sculptures from churches that no longer exist.
In the surroundings of Santo Stefano Quisquina
Moving away from the center you will find places, religious and otherwise, suitable for contemplation, meditation and reunification with nature. The first is the small church of S. Calogero, located on the "pizzo" of the same name, where the silence and altitude make it a particularly evocative place. Reachable via a road in the woods, the small church houses a bronze bust of the Saint, whose devotion is strong throughout the area, and an altar with a bas-relief depicting San Calogero in contemplation, as well as two canvases depicting moments of life of the hermit.
Fundamental is theHermitage of Santa Rosalia alla Quisquina. Also built at about a thousand meters above sea level, near the first cave where the patron saint of Palermo lived between 1150 and 1162, part of the seventeenth-century Sanctuary, in baroque style. The convent, in absolute harmony with the lifestyle of the Saint and the hermits who built it, today houses museum rooms. Since 2015 he has also been one of the two leaders of the "Itinerarium Rosaliae", a 180km trail that connects, in an evocative naturalistic itinerary, the two Sanctuaries erected on the places of life and meditation of Santa Rosalia: that of the Quisquina with that of Mount Pellegrino a Palermo.
Also worth reaching during your tour isEquipped Goodnight Area, located 7 km from the center and complete with stone tables, stoves, fountains and toilets, essential for hours of relaxation and enjoyment immersed in nature. Don't miss the suggestive Andromeda Theater, an international attraction created by the shepherd and artist Lorenzo Reina: the recently built theatre, is characterized by a circular stage and stone seats positioned in alignment with the constellation of Andromeda.
Get to Santo Stefano Quisquina
To reach Santo Stefano Quisquina you can drive there state road 118 which crosses the city, also reachable thanks to the nearby ones highways 188, 189, 121 and 386. All the routes, including local bus lines, that reach it allow you to witness the stupendous panorama offered by the Monti-Sicani. To get there you can land atPalermo Falcone e Borsellino Airport, about 110 km away, or atTrapani Vincenzo Florio Airport, about 150 km away.
