Houël was a French painter, architect and engraver who undertook his Grand Tour to Sicily in 1776. The artist had intended to travel for only one year, but it took him over three years to document the infinite riches of this place. In Sicily, Houël wrote a diary where he transcribed his impressi...

Marcus Tullius Cicero was born in 106 BC in Arpino, Lazio. Thanks to his family's wealthy economic standing, he studied in Rome under excellent teachers before becoming an illustrious Roman lawyer, politician, writer and orator. In 75 BC he held the position of quaestor in Sicily and in 73 BC cam...

Archimedes was the most brilliant scientist and inventor of the ancient world. He was born in Syracuse in 287 BC and was a mathematician, astronomer, engineer and physicist. He dedicated his whole life to the research and creation of his machines: around 40 inventions are attributed to him....

The Puppet Opera is a tradition that dates back to the 18th century, when the Sicilians began to use the puppet theatre to perform the events of Charlemagne's paladins. The puppets are traditionally carved from blocks of beech, olive or lemon wood, and are usually around 75 cm tall. Every detail...

The scalpel is a short-bladed knife used in surgery. There are different types, which differ in the shape of the blade and the type of operation to be carried out....

Apotropaic is a term referring to an object, gesture, animal or formula that removes or cancels out an evil influence. In ancient times oriental magic formulas written on tablets or objects were considered apotropaic, including rare stones, depictions of animals or parts of them, monsters, masks an...

The oinochoe is one of the vessels typically used during symposia. Similar to a jug, its function was to hold wine or water to be poured into jars for drinking. This jug had a rather elongated oval body, a single handle, and varied between 20 to 40 cm tall....

San Giacomo Zebedeo (James, son of Zebedee) was one of the twelve apostles and was called "St. James the Great" to distinguish him from the apostle of the same name. After Jesus' death, he went to Spain to spread the Gospel and upon his return to Judea, was beheaded by Herod Agrippa. His name is l...

Bloody sacrifice was at the core of most religious rituals in Greek culture. In the city's collective practice, on the one hand it was an instrument of communication with the divine, and on the other, a moment of social cohesion and solidarity among citizens. The sacrifice consisted in the ritual ...

Biodiversity means the variety of different species, both animal and plant, that coexist within the same ecosystem. This phenomenon is constantly monitored and studied using statistical methods, especially in areas of the Earth where biodiversity has declined significantly in recent decades in the...