Palermo, City of Kings: The Heart of Sicily

Palermo - the capital of Sicily - is a destination with a difference. The city is a treasure trove of original monuments and works of art, combined with architecture of grand proportions. Yet it also has a grittier side, exemplified by its mafia connections. Jeremy Dummett provides the first concise history of Palermo, along with a survey of its most important monuments and sites.

Palermo became the capital of Sicily under the Arabs in the ninth century. Until then, Syracuse had been the leading city of Sicily. Palermo blossomed under the Arabs and Normans, with influences visible today. It played a significant role in the Sicilian Vespers when the island rose against the French. In 1860, Sicily was freed from Spanish Bourbon rule by Garibaldi and joined the newly formed Kingdom of Italy. Many notable writers, including Goethe, Henry Swinburne, and Maupassant, wrote about the city.

Palermo's monuments are striking and unusual, from the Byzantine mosaic of Christ Pantocrator in the Palatine Chapel within the Norman palace, to sculptures by Giacomo Serpotta in the oratories, the decorative piazzas Pretoria and Quattro Canti, the Arab-Norman style Cathedral, and the Norman complex at Monreale. The city has also produced world-class writers and artists, including Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa and Renato Guttuso.

This book serves as an essential guide for visitors and can also be enjoyed as a standalone history of Palermo and its significance at the heart of Sicily.