The Giudecca

The senses tell the Giudecca

hearing
Whispers and sounds in a faraway time

As you sit on the stone and are lulled by the gentle dripping of water, it seems as if you can hear the stifled laughter of Jewish women during a purifying bath as they welcome a young girl who has just become a woman.

taste
Unleavened bread

Unleavened bread, i.e. bread with no yeast, is a type of bread prepared with grain flour and water, like all other bread, but without the fermentation process.
bread is used as a ritual food during Passover, in memory of the Jew’s hasty escape from Egypt. It is said that during their escape the Jews had no time to let their bread rise before baking it.

smell
The smell of bread

When taking Via della Giudecca, the first scent to hit you would be freshly baked bread and biscuits. The street was full of bakeries and ovens, run by entire dynasties of bakers!

The naumachiae: naval battles at the theatre

Neapolis and fire. The Altar of Hieron and the sacrificial fire

Pantalica and the earth element

Giudecca and the earth element. Between gardens and artisan workshops

Ortygia

Giudecca and water. The ritual baths: the Casa Bianca mikveh

Nature in Neapolis

Ortygia and water. The Fountain of Arethusa

Pantalica and air. The skies of Pantalica: from hawks to bats

The fountain of Diana in Piazza Archimede

Pantalica and fire. The Metal Age: objects from the culture of Pantalica

The Neapolis

Ortygia and fire. Archimedes and the invention of the burning mirrors

Giudecca and fire. Cooking and the Jewish religion

Pantalica and water: the Myth of the Anapo River

The Cathedral of Syracuse

Giudecca and air. The Basilica of San Giovannello

Ortygia and the earth element. Piazza del Duomo: discovering the origins.

Neapolis and the water element. The Nymphaeum

The interior of the Cathedral of Syracuse

Neapolis and the air element. The Ear of Dionysius

Neapolis and the earth element. Places of performance: the Greek theatre and the Roman amphitheatre

Giudecca

Ortygia and the air element. The Gods of Olympus and the Temple of Apollo.

A journey to Pantalica