Calatafimi Segesta

History

The town developed during the age of the Muslim emirate of Sicily, when it was known as Qal`at(a)fīmī ( قلعة فيمي ), referring to the defensive castle overlooking the town, now partially restored from ruins. One hypothesis for the castle's name derives it from "Castrum Phimes" - a stronghold protecting the territory of a Roman period nobleman mentioned by Cicero, Diocles Phimes. Another hypothesis derives it from "Castle of Euphemius", possibly referring to the 5th century Byzantine patriarch by that name or, more likely, to the 9th century Euphemius of Sicily, a legendary figure who probably brought Muslim mercenaries to Sicily in 827 to help defend his throne, only to have them conquer the island for themselves.

Calatafimi's part of Sicily was one of the first to be occupied by the Aghlabids from Ifriqiya in their conquest of the island, and was one of the last centres of Islamic culture after the end of the Norman rule. The excavations near Segesta have revealed a 12th-century Islamic necropolis and mosque. There are also references to an Islamic-period town called Calathamet (Qal`at al-Hammah - قلعة الحمّة), on the border of the territories of Calatafimi and Castellammare del Golfo, possibly equating the modern Terme Segestane.

From 1336 until 1860, Calatafimi was a feudal territory under Habsburg and Spanish nobles, despite three attempts to regain an independent status (in 1399, 1412 and 1802).

It was on a hill near Calatafimi, called Pianto Romano, that, in 1860, Giuseppe Garibaldi and his Mille first encountered the troops of the Bourbons on a battlefield (see the Battle of Calatafimi). This was the first significant battle for the Italian unification (or Risorgimento) and it was in this battle that Garibaldi was said to have uttered the famous battle cry: "Here we make Italy, or we die" (in Italian "Qui si fa l'Italia, o si muore"). A memorial, in the form of large stone obelisk containing an ossuary of the remains of those fallen in the battle, currently marks the hilltop.

In his later life, the 19th-century English novelist Samuel Butler made annual trips to Calatafimi, and a street of the town was named after him. Summer theatres is held in the Roman amphitheatre at Segesta every other year. A new archaeological museum is being created that will show findings from the Segesta archaeological excavations.

Population

In 1901 the population of Calatafimi was recorded as 11,426. Subsequent major emigrations due to poverty and unemployment kept the number from growing and, after 1950, the population began decreasing. Prior to 1900, the main destination was Tunisia, later it was the United States and Argentina.

After World War II, Canada and Australia became destinations, as did Germany and Great Britain and the major cities of the Italian mainland. On 31 December 2015 there were only 6,712 permanent residents, although the physical size of the town had grown, as families occupied larger residences. Following severe damage in the 1968 Belice Valley earthquake, a new section of town, Sasi, was built on former farmlands about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) from the old town centre.

Civil buildings and monuments

Among the civil buildings and monuments of historical interest you can visit:

The Doric temple of Segesta

Built between 430-420 BCE, 61 metres long and 26 wide, it has 36 Doric columns which are of a "rough" finish as the temple has never been completed. It is also without a roof: scholars are in disagreement as to whether the temple was deliberately planned this way. (See more here)

The Amphitheatre

It is located on a hilltop and was built by the Greeks at about 400 B.C., It was discovered in the 19th century. They play classical comedies and tragedies in July and August.

The Greek sanctuary

Situated in contrada Mango, in the archaeological area of Segesta; there are the remains of an ancient sanctuary, dating back perhaps to the 6th century B.C. and built outside the town centre of Segesta.

Pianto Romano

The mausoleum of Pianto Romano: it is situated on a hill at few kilometres far from Calatafimi (southwest direction). In some documents, dating back to the early years of the 17th century, this countryside was called “Chianti di Rumanu” (the vineyard with young plants belonging to the Romano family), but today it known as “Pianto Romano”. On this hill, in memory of the famous battle between the Garibaldians and the Bourbon army, they built a Monument which keeps the mortal remains of the Garibaldian volunteers and the Bourbon soldiers who died on May 15, 1860 during the battle. in the battle . This Mausoleum, designed by the architect Enrico Basile, was inaugurated on May 15, 1892.

the Castle Eufemio

It is a typical example of Norman-Swabian architecture, built with a defensive scope. It is located on a hill dominating the town. There are written documents about it only since the middle of the 12th century when Edrisi, a traveller and geographer, describes it as “an ancient and primitive with a populated village”. In the middle of the 12th century it was one of the imperial castles used by Frederick II’s troops against the Muslim rebels. Later it was the castle of the feudatories of Calatafimi and of the governors who run it on behalf of the Crown for certain periods. In 1282, during the rebellion of the Sicilian Vespers, the Provençal feudatory Gugliemo Porcelet lived in it, but as he was loved by his subjects, the rebels spared his life and he was sent back to Provence together with his family. It was then a military garrison and a prison until 1868, when it was abandoned.

the municipal Theatre Felice Cavallotti

It is located opposite the ex convent of Saint Francis and was founded in 1881 on the iniziative of the famous Sir Nicolò Rindello, a patriot and painter. It is entitled to Felice Cavallotti (1842-1898), a literary man, journalist and deputy. It has two rows of boxes, the gallery and the stalls. They have restored it several times: it has been working until 1962, restored after the 1968 earthquake, and reopened in 2016.

Casa Garibaldi museum

It is located in via Marconi, near the Town Hall: it was the house of the parish priest Don Antonino Pampalone (1810-1866), a fervent liberal and deputy for Calatafimi at the Sicilian Parliament of 1848. On May 16, 1860 Garibaldi and four of his officers were given hospitality here and on the same day the General spoke, with the applause of the people of Calatafimi, about Italy’s unity from its balcony. In July1862 Garibaldi stayed in this house again and visited Pianto Romano: the site of the battle and the common grave, marked by a simple cross, with the mortal remains of the dead soldiers of both armies. From the balcony of the same house he spoke to Calatafimesis, and probably pronouncing, for the first time, the famous saying “Either Rome or death".

The Foundling Wheel (la ruota dei proietti)

If you go down the narrow via Ospedale from the large square of Santissimo Crocifisso, after a few steps, near a secondary door of Ospedale Civico, you will meet “the Foundling’s Wheel”. Once they abandoned here, to public assistance, the unwished new-born babies.

Religious Buildings

Calatafimi Segesta has about 30 churches in which there are several marble statues from the school of Antonello Gagini and different paintings. The most important are the following:

The Mother Church (Chiesa Madre)

The Mother Church or San Silvestro Papa (dedicated to Pope Sylvester, the saint), was restored at about 1500. Its origin dates back to the XII century and is dedicated to Saint Sylvester the Pope, the oldest patron of Calatafimi who, according to the popular tradition, protected the town from the incursions of Muslims who rebelled against the imperial power. As the primitive urban nucleus enlarged and the population increased, the original building was amplified and modified several times between the XV and the 18th century because it was too small to hold the believers. Thanks to its width it was the place of popular assemblies, like the one in 1655 which led to the election of Maria Santissima di Giubino as the patroness of Calatafimi against the invasion of grasshoppers that were destroying crops.

The façade has no decorations. With a nave and two aisles separated by columns, the interior is in Renaissance style, though there are also simple Baroque elements. In the apse there is a marble polyptych, made by Bartolomeo Berrettaro and Giuliano Mancino in 1516. Moreover, the Church hosts a marble sarcophagus with the mortal remains of Giuliano Truglio, dating back to the 18th century.

The church of Santissimo Crocifisso

It was built to house the so-called Most Holy Crucifix (see Culture) at about 1700. This sanctuary, in a Baroque style with Neoclassical influences, is situated on the spot where once there was the small and ancient Church Saint Catherine of Alexandria. In the sacristy of that little Church, on 23th, 24 and 25 June 1657 an old wooden Crucifix worked a series of miraculous recoveries, whose authenticity is witnessed by the documents of that period and by the construction of the present sanctuary (from 1741 to 1759), which replaced the old little Church. The plan was carried out by Giovanni Biagio Amico, an architect from Trapani, and its building expenses were wholly borne by the people of Calatafimi. Further to the miracles of 1657, they started the solemn and characteristic feast of Santissimo Crocifisso, in which religious faith and very old traditions merged. So far it has been held for more than three centuries. The church has a longitudinal plan with one nave; there are three altars on each side. The high altar is closed by a classical aedicula with a curvilinear tympanum, harmoniously inserted in the group, made homogeneous by the stuccoes and gilt decorations on the walls. Inside the Church there are these works:

Chiesa di San Michele (Saint Michael's Church)

Once the devotion for Saint Michael was very deep at Calatafimi and his feast falling on May 8 was accompanied by "iorni quindici di franchezza di ogni gabella", that is people didn’t pay the duty on goods for 15 days. This Church, which originally was a property of the confraternity of Saint Michael Archangel,[6] kept the mortal remains of the blessed Arcangelo Placenza from Calatafimi for a certain period, then they were moved to Chiesa di Santa Maria di Gesù (Alcamo) in Alcamo. In 1596 the confraternity gave the Church to the Friars of the Third Order of Saint Francis who enlarged it and built their monastery next to the Church. As it suffered considerable damages owing to the 1968 Belice earthquake, the present timber- trussed roof is due to a subsequent restoration.[7] The interior of the church, with a nave and two aisles, is in neoclassical and baroque style with three portals.[6] Inside it there is a holy water stoup of the 16th century[6], a statue of Saint Michael Archangel dated 1490 and different stuccoes and paintings.[6]

Sanctuary of Maria Santissima di Giubino

It is located at about 2 kilometres from Calatafimi Segesta, on the northern side of the hill Tre Croci and is one of the most known Marian sanctuaries in Sicily. Its fame is linked to the memory of the Blessed Archangel Placenza from Calatafimi, who lived here for some time, and to the devotion to the Most Holy Mary of Giubino, patroness of this town.

Church of Saint Julian the martyr

It dominates piazza Francesco Cangemi and is very old; in 1619 it became a parish. The façade has a stained-glass window with holy motifs and the main door is framed by Corinthian square pilasters, surmounted by a triangular fronton. Inside the Church there are several wooden statues and paintings.

the church of Maria Santissima di Giubino (co-patroness of the town)

It was built in 1721 to house an allegedly miraculous marble-relief icon of the Madonna, which is brought to a country chapel during the summer. (A copy of the relief is housed in the Church of St. Joseph in Brooklyn, New York, giving testimony to the large emigrant community of Calatafimesi who lived in Brooklyn in the early 20th century). The Church of Maria Santissima di Giubino is dedicated to the patroness of the town. It has a single nave, with an elegant barrel vault decorated with frescoes and ornamental motifs. Inside it there are some important works: the painting with the Assumption, Our Lady with Angels and Saints dated 1617, the altar-piece of All Saints, an 18th-century wooden organ and a 15th-century marble alto-rilievo representing Madonna of Giubino with the Infant Jesus. In 1655 an invasion of grasshoppers was destroying all the crops in the countryside of Calatafimi: the people, assembled in a Church, decided that, after putting all the names of the saints who had an altar in town inside a ballot box, they would choose as a patron that one whose name had been drawn. After they invoked the Holy Ghost, it was chosen the name of Maria Santissima di Giubino by lots. The central part of the triptych with the image of the Virgin was soon taken out from the wall in the country church of Giubino and taken in procession: Calatafimi was free from grasshoppers. Maria Santissima di Giubino was elected patroness of the town (25 April 1655) and the bas-relief of the Virgin of Giubino was then placed on the high altar of the new Church,[6] designed by Giovanni Biagio Amico (the same planner of the Church of Santissimo Crocifisso) in 1721. In 1931 the triptych was recomposed in the town sanctuary and restored. There was a new restoration of the Church in 1978.

Ex convento di San Francesco di Assisi (Saint Francis' ex monastry)

It was founded by Giovan Giacomo Gullo, baron of Arcauso in 1543, and belonged to the Friars Minor Conventual. After the abolition of the monastery, the building was used as a public school. Today it is the seat of the picturesque and important Ethnic-Anthropological Museum and displays old work-tools, home objects and furniture. In this way it transmits the heritage, customs and memories of past generations, in a direct and effective way.

Other places of interest

Religious Events

These are the most important religious events at Calatafimi-Segesta:

+Procession of the Most Holy Crucifix: on May 3 every year.

Other Events

Music

Among the musical groups in Calatafimi there are:

Notable people from Calatafimi

Economy

The economy of Calatafimi is primarily agricultural, the most important crops being citrus, grapes and olives.