Naumachie in Taormina

The Palazzo of the Dukes of Santo Stefano is situated right next to the gate Porta Catania, on the Via De Spuches Built between the late 1200s and the early 1300s, the palace was part of the medieval walls of Taormina. The Palace of the Dukes of Santo Stefano is a masterpiece of Sicilian Romaneque and Gotic style, fitted with Arabic-Norman elements. The building has a beautiful garden in front of its main facades, where there is still a well for the collection of rain-water which was the wa...

On the square, just in front of the Cathedral, is situated the fountain of Piazza Duomo. The fountain was built in 1635 in the Baroque style, is also called "4 fountains" because the 4 small columns supporting basins which are located at the corners of the central basin; mythological ponies overlook the basins and fountain water flows out of their mouths. The central part consists of two basins. Above the two centrak basins, there is the Minotaur, half human and half horse, which is the embl...

The construction of the present church of Saint Catherine of Alexandria occurred after the Capuchins bought the previous church dedicated to the saint of Alexandria that was outside the walls (the current church of Sant'antonio da Padova). The certain date of this church construction is not known; we know that the ancient church of Santa Caterina, outside the walls, was sold to the Capuchin Friars in 1610. As an indicative date we have that which is carved on the tombstone of the ossuary that...