Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean. It became Italian in 1860 but has a very distinct landscape & culture

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Sicily, or Sicilia,is the largest island in the Mediterranean and together with its outlying smaller islands constitutes an autonomous region of Italy. It became part of Italy in 1860 but has a rich and varied culture as well as a distinctive landscape famous for archeological sites like the Necropolis of Pantalica, Agrigento's Valley of the Temples and the temples of Selinunte. In the heart of Palermo's loveliest square, Piazza Pretoria, stands this magnificent fountain referred to as Fontana della Vergogna, or "Fountain of Shame", the work of the Florentine sculptor Francesco Camilliani in 1554-5. It overlooks the facades of the two churches on the square, Santa Caterina and San Giuseppe dei Teatini. This fountain is adorned with depictions of allegories, animal heads, nymphs, monsters, ornamental staircases and balustrades gods and goddesses. One of the statuettes guarding the ramps is Ceres, the classical patroness of Sicily, depicted with a horn of plenty.

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Size: 3616px × 5000px
Location: Sicily, Italy
Photo credit: © John Heseltine / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: allegories, architecture, balustrades, camilliani, caterina, ceres, church, cosimo, florence, florentine, fontana, fountain, giuseppe, gods, medici, monsters, nymphs, ornamental, palermo, piazza, pretorio, sculptor, sculpture, shame, sicily, square, staircases, statues, teatini, vergogna