Museums, Galleries, Exhibitions
Some of the most important:
The Archaeological Museum of Agrigento is Sicily’s most visited (one of Italy’s top ten), and lays out the story of this beautiful Greek city with splendid openness. A gigantic towering telemon gives a sense of the former massiveness of the Greek world’s largest temple and alone is worth the trip.
The Archaeological Museum of Siracusa takes us through the chronology of eastern Sicily with absolute clarity. Modern, beautifully organized, it is one of the best archaeological museums in Europe. Caravaggio fans will want to visit the Church of Santa Lucia della Badia in Piazza Duomo, where his housed his masterpiece The Burial of Saint Lucy.
The Museo del Papiro looks into the fascinating history of papyrus in Siracusa, the only place in all Europe where it grows. You can participate in papyrus making there. There is also a world class collection of ancient coins in Siracusa.
Messina’s city museum houses two other Caravaggios as well as a fine collection of medieval work.
Palermo is home to the flagship of Sicily’s matchless collection of archaeological museums, Museo Archeologico Regionale di A.Salinas. Its main art collection, the Galleria Regionale di Sicilia, is housed in the old Arabic Kalsa Quarter, and is home to Renaissance painting, sculpture, and archeological treasures from around the island. The Pitrè Ethnographical Museum is Sicily’s best display of traditional culture as well.
For lovers of archaeology, Lipari, the largest Aeolian Island, boasts one of the clearest and most thorough collections of the rich underwater detritus of three millennia of Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans and everyone else who has sailed the Western Mediterranean. There is also an interesting vulcanology museum.
Some of the most charming museums are scattered around the small towns. We track temporary exhibitions around the island continually and will be happy to share the latest information with you.