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Visit Mazara-del-Vallo
The town of Mazara-del-Vallo is located at the mouth of the Mazaro River in south-west Sicily.
The town has been very important in the history of Sicily - it arose as a commercial emporium to Selinunte, and since antiquity it has been a safe port for boats. Given its strategic geographical position, it also became a much-conquered land for different peoples, including the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, Arabs, Normans and Swabians, each of whom left an indelible mark on its territory.
Mazara, its Cathedral and the “Dancing Satyr”
Mazara is a city that still has an urban structure in the ancient Arab tradition, with the Old Town, divided into several districts (the "Casbah", "Bath") characterized by winding alleys and courtyards that were once within the protection of the ancient city walls, built by Roger II (they lasted until the 19th century).
With the advent of the Normans, the city was enriched by churches and monasteries, and the municipal coat of arms features the walls and castle built by Roger II. Of the ancient castle dating back to 1097 there are today only a few ruins, such as a door with two pointed arches, a typical example of the so-called ogival style that characterized Sicilian architecture in the Norman period.
Mazara cathedral and sarcophagi
Only a few traces remain of the Norman Cathedral of Mazara, dedicated to the "Holy Saviour” and built towards the end of the 11th century, since in the late 17th century it was completely rebuilt in different styles. The main entrance is located between two marble columns, and is artistically decorated with a marble relief depicting three knights and a landed Arab warrior. The interior has a longitudinal plan and three naves, divided by columns with arches, of an incontrovertible Baroque style.
The cathedral contains importants monuments, including the famous sarcophagus, the fresco with the Christ "Pantocrator" dating back to 1200 on the east wall of the transept, a painted cross and a few works performed by the most prestigious members of the Gagini family. Domenico Gagini (1420-1492), for example, was the author of the Sarcophagus of Bishop Montaperto, now housed in the Diocesan Museum, and the same sculptor also created the so-called "Madonna del Soccorso", in the chapel of the cathedral. The "Transfiguration" was created by Antonello Gagini (1478-1536) and his son Antonino (1504-1530 approx.). Antonello Gagini created the altar canopy, with Saints John the Baptist and Benedict in the first half of the sixteenth century.
Another notable example of a 16th century sculpture is the portal of Bartolomeo Berrettaro (16th century) with eight Stories of San Egidio on the pillars, surmounted by a lunette with a “Madonna and Child” and two statues of saints. On the main altar there is a silver frontal, a work by artists from Trapani. Above the tabernacle other reliefs depicting the "Dove of the Holy Spirit" flanked by two angels. Other decorations, some works by the Ferraro da Giuliana family (active between 1574 and 1580) into two panels depict the Nativity and the Birth of the Baptist near statues of the “Madonna and Child with St. John the Baptist.”
Particularly worthy of mention are the sarcophagi. They were found some years ago and are works of great historical and artistic interest. The first is an "Amazonomachy", that is a battle between Greeks and Amazons, probably under the walls of Troy. The overall affect consists of various vividly dramatic and frantic scenes, with participation of warriors, amazons and horses (the work is probably from the 2nd century AD, and a copy of a Hellenistic original). Another sarcophagus depicts the abduction of Kore and the breathless quest by Great Mother Demetra; it seems to go back to the early third century AD.
The third sarchophagus is called " Sarcofago di Canzio Marciano" and it represents a scene of wild boar hunting. According to critics, for the static nature of the figures, the work was performed by minor artists, perhaps in the fourth century AD. The Greek inscription refers to the name of the deceased, “Marchionòs” (Marciano), a rather common name in the early days of Christianity.
In 1999 a new sarchophagus was discovered in Mazara, which was described in detail by Professor C.A. di Stefano, who said that [...] The new tomb was discovered in the autumn of 1999 in the Cappella dell’Incoronata” during the restoration work (...) The main side of the sarcophagus presents the myth of Endymion. The young shepherd is pictured to the extremity right, while sleeping sitting on a rocky terrain and reclining his head against the switch. Hypnos, the god of Sleep watchs over him, with the figure of a winged young (…)
The interpretations so far proposed for this myth, which characterizes a large group of sarcophagi, despite some occasional differences and some controversy, are in fact substantially concordant. The Sleep of Endymion, who, following one of the versions of the legend, always had to sleep without ever waking up or grow old, is an image of death; but it is also a sleep, aided by the loving presence of divinity, which represents the sweetest of the rests after the tribulations of life [...]" (See C.A. Di Stefano, “Un nuovo sarcofago Romano da Mazara del Vallo”, in “Quarte giornate internazionali di studi sull'area elima” ["A new Roman sarcophagus from ‘Mazara del Vallo’"], Proceedings, I, Pisa, 2003: 411-421).
Other Mazara-del-Vallo churches
A prize example of Arab-Norman architecture in Mazara is the church of San Nicolò Lo Regale, whose foundation goes back probably to the 12th century. It is in a Greek cross form with three apses. Inside, under the floor some mosaics have been discovered from the early Christian period probably put on a floor from the Roman age. Built on the ruins of a villa dating to the period between the third and fifth centuries AD, it was rebuilt in the Baroque period, but it has preserved its original appearance composed of a series of blind arches to close the three pointed windows arranged on each side of the structure.
Also close to Mazara is the church of the Madonna dell’Alto, called "Giummare" and dating from the Byzantine era . It has a single nave,and the church is punctuated at regular intervals by three large arches with the roof vaults. In the apse of the temple are visible two frescoes of the Byzantine era, dating from the twelfth century, representing S. John Chrysostom and St. Basil the Great. It was built in 1100 for to grant a wish by Judith (died 1136), daughter of Count Roger, in the same place where some years before had stood a square tower. The church is also known as "Santa Maria delle 'Giummare'" for a type of dwarf palm, called 'Giummara', which grows in the area. The church, despite many changes occurring during the centuries, still preserves traces of the original structure. The façade has a porch on the left wall with two arches while the portal dates back to 14th century. Within two side niches traces of Byzantine frescoes have been found that seem to represent St. Basil and St. John Chrysostom. On the main altar stands the marble statue of the “Madonna and Child” by Giacomo Castagnola (16th century).
Baroque architecture in Mazara-del-Vallo
Towards the sixteenth century and the beginning of the eighteenth, the city was affected by various buildings in the Baroque style. The Church of S. Catherine, located behind the apse of the Cathedral, was built in the 14th century and it was restored in the 17th century with a richly decorated and typical Baroque style, such as the grotesques. Inside there are some frescoes by Giuseppe Testa (18th century) and Antonello Gagini (1524). The Church of Santa Veneranda is a typical example of Sicilian Baroque style, with two lodges, a pagoda roof, and a portal in Rococo style. The interior has a centric plan, and a fine plaster decoration. Another example is the Baroque church of S. Michael, a remake of an old Norman church, founded by Roger II, with a Latin cross form, a single nave and small chapels. The decorations are by Tommaso Sciacca (1734-1795), author of numerous paintings on the altars and on the vault with a fresco depicting the “Triumph of St. Michael and Bartholomew Sanseverino.” The bell tower and the porch of the monastery date back to the eighteenth century.
The Church of San Francesco was built in the late 18th century. The portal is by Leonardo lncrivaglia, and is adorned with a marble medallion depicting St. Francis receiving the stigmata. The interior has a nave and it is decorated with frescoes and stuccos.
More Mazara highlights
After the churches, well worth a visit in Mazara-del-Vallo is the so-called "Museum of the Dancing Satyr" whose centerpiece is the statue of the "Dancing Satyr", found in 1997 in the Strait of Sicily. It is an example of a Greek bronze statue dating presumably from the late Hellenistic or early Empire. It is a statue of uncommon size, about 2 meters high. Because of its size, according to A. di Vita, the "Dancing Satyr" was not part of a group of satyrs, but he was alone and was probably chained astern of a Roman warship. The “Dancing Satyr” is curved on the right side, with the arms extended forward; it is captured in the moment of making a jump on the tip of his right foot while lifting the left leg. (It was often the case that astern of Roman warships statues of mythological character were carried, which served as "protectors" of the ship.
In addition to its artistic heritage, Mazara offers tourists who love the sea stretches of rocky coastline with beaches of fine sand, and a nature reserve with typical Mediterranean vegetation. Other beaches close by are an ideal destination for scuba diving.
Finally as confirmation of a tradition closely linking Mazara-del-Vallo to the Arab culture is the local cuisine, with couscous, a culinary heritage of the Arabs of the Middle Ages; fried red mullet and cuttlefish, and sea bream in broth being among the local specialities. Mazara still boasts the largest fishing fleet of Italy.
See also Mazara-del-Vallo history and etymology.
See the the Sicily travel guide for more places to visit in the same region as Mazara-del-Vallo.