The city of Syracuse was founded in 734 BC by the Corinthians from Greece. Led by Archias of Corinth, they settled in the area of Ortygia, the island that today forms the city's historic centre. Syracuse was the most beautiful and the largest city in the Greek colonies. It was a splendid sight from...

With its "eye" shape, Piazza del Duomo is the most important area of the historic centre today. In fact, it houses two main buildings: the Cathedral and the Senatorial Palace. The earth element tells us the thousand-year-old history of this square through its buried treasures and thanks to the rema...

In Ortygia, the air element is connected to Greek mythology, thanks to the presence of temples, sacred buildings dedicated to the Olympic gods. According to Greek religion, the gods lived on Mount Olympus, a very high and unreachable mountain always shrouded in clouds. The temple was where the god...

The origin of Ortygia is closely linked to the worship of water. In fact, the island rises on the Porto Grande of Syracuse and is characterised by the presence of the Fountain of Arethusa. This curious source of freshwater has the unique aspect of pouring out onto the shore. The beauty of this stre...

The fire element is linked to a historical event involving Syracuse and the most famous inventor and scientist of antiquity: Archimedes. He was born in Syracuse in 287 BC and dedicated his whole life to the research and creation of his inventions. Archimedes' life was influenced by his hometown, an...

The cathedral has a rectangular shape and is divided into three areas called "naves". The central part, covered by a wooden roof, is called the main nave; while the smaller side corridors form the minor naves. Along the left nave parts of the columns of the ancient Greek temple of Athena are still ...

The beautiful Fountain of Diana stands in the centre of Piazza Archimede in the heart of Ortygia. The work was built in 1906 by sculptor Giulio Moschetti, who had already achieved excellent results with the [approfondimenti id="3612" testo_link="Fontana di Proserpina"](Fountain of Persephone) in Cat...

The Cathedral of Syracuse is the main monument on the square and dates back to the Byzantine period. The uniqueness of this church lies in the fact that for its construction, the structure of the ancient Greek temple of Athena that once stood in the same place was used for its base. The temple's col...