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One of the most important archaeological museums in Sicily documents the ancient cultures and civilizations of both the city of Syracuse and eastern Sicily (see Archaeology Museum Highlights).

Extensive collections of archaeo-logical finds from Agrigento and related cities reveal the Bronze Age through to Hellenization and the Roman age (see Archaeological Museum Exhibits).

The museum, housed in a 17th-century former monastery, is known for its extensive collection of decorative arts spanning from the 1600s to the 1800s, and includes coral pieces, jewellery and Nativity scene figurines.

This museum is home to architectural, sculptural and decorative fragments recovered from Messina’s churches after the 1908 earthquake, as well as paintings and sculpture. Highlights include two works painted by Caravaggio during his stay in Messina in 1608–09: The Raising of Lazarus and The Adoration of the Shepherds with dramatically lit, monumental figures.

Objects recovered from sites throughout western Sicily illustrate the development of art and culture from prehistoric eras to the Roman period.

The Catalan-Gothic palace was built at the end of the 15th century and is now home to the collections of the former National Museum. Paintings and sculpture by Sicilian masters span the 13th to 16th centuries, complemented by fine works by Italian and Flemish artists (see Palazzo Abatellis).

Housed in a restored windmill, exhibits here trace each fascinating stage of traditional salt-making, from filling the salt pans with sea water, to evaporation, recovering, storing, cleaning and grinding the salt (see Saline, Salt Pans).

Objects on display in this interesting museum range from obsidian tools of the Neolithic period to items acquired through foreign trade, such as Etruscan red glazed ceramics. There are also beautiful vases and masks from Greece that have survived from Sicily’s Greek occupation (see Aeolian Archaeological Museum, Lipari).

The palace itself, built in 1234, is noteworthy for its medieval architecture with 15th-century Catalan additions. The collections trace the development of figurative art in southeast Sicily with medieval and Renaissance sculpture, Sicilian, Italian and Flemish paintings including works by Antonello and Caravaggio, and a collection of Sicilian decorative arts.

The mission of Antonino Uccello was to preserve what he saw as the fast disappearing culture of peasant farmers. Every item used in the home, workroom, farm, for transportation, entertainment or devotion, was traditionally handmade. The result are elegantly crafted tools, illustrating a very personal and unique aspect of Sicilian history.