traveldk.com

Altieri produces ceramics in traditional styles as well as their own innovative designs. There are also pieces in gold, silver and coral in the decorative arts tradition of Trapani (see Altieri 1882, Erice).

Take a late afternoon drive from Sciacca up to Caltabellotta . Skip the modern outskirts of town to wander around the narrow streets and piazzettas of Terravecchia, the old medieval centre. Terravecchia lies on a flat plain under the Chiesa Madre founded by Count Roger one year before he took Palermo (see Norman Palermo). It’s newly restored, so admire the entry portal with pointed arch and the bell tower which was originally an old Arabic fortification; inside see the Madonna of the Chain, St Benedict and Madonna and Child – all works by the artist Gagini.

To the north of the church take the little path up the rock to the ruins of the Castelvecchio, the old castle, from which you can look down on Caltabellotta and out over the valley.

On the other side of the plain, opposite the Chiesa Madre, find the tiny church of San Salvatore with its zig-zag decoration around the door. Use the steps carved out of the rock to climb up to the highest point of Monte Castello. Walk around the ruins of Count Roger’s castle, with its single Gothic doorway, and take in one of the most stunning views in Sicily. To the southwest see the coastline from Agrigento (see Agrigento and the Valle dei Templi) to Marsala .

Back in town, stroll from Piazza Umberto I to via Roma in the newer part of the village, where you can have an excellent dinner of mountain fare at the Trattoria Ferla (see Trattoria dei Templi, Agrigento).

Fig-filled nucatoli and citrus and honey torrone are displayed in a small, elegant shop located off Modica’s Corso. Their chocolate is still made using the ancient Aztec method of working the cocoa with sugar and spices.

Palermitan fast food under the façade of San Francesco. Sandwiches, panelle , focaccia and pasta.

A classic pastry shop and bar offering a wide range of sweets, biscuits, breads, gelato and arancini (see Arancini). Sit in the elegant tearoom or on the pedestrianized street.

Messina-born Antonello (c.1430–79) is one of the masters of Italian Renaissance art, known for his exacting detail, intriguing portraits and the luminous quality of his paintings. He achieved the latter through his skilful use of oil paints, a technique he learned from Flemish masters. Italian Renaissance artists adopted oils in his wake and it became the standard medium for the world’s greatest masterpieces. The few Antonello works that remain in Sicily are in museums in Palermo, Messina, Syracuse and Cefalù.

After three centuries of long-distance Byzantine rule, North African Moors invaded in 827 AD at Mazara del Vallo. Four years later they took Palermo, made it their capital and transformed it into the cosmopolitan city it remains today. They brought infrastructure to rural Sicily, improved irrigation and introduced new methods of agriculture and fishing.

The Arab conquest of the island began in AD 827 and was complete only in AD 902 with the fall of Taormina.

A Sicilian fast-food treat, available in bars and from street vendors. Balls of rice are stuffed with a meaty tomato ragout, rolled in breadcrumbs, and fried. Their round, golden shapes resemble oranges (aranci ), hence their name.