Augusta Attractions
Communications
SS 114 Catania-Syracuse; railway station.
Location
Augusta lies on Sicily's eastern coast, 34km/21 mi to the north of Siracusa (Syracuse), on a narrow peninsula which juts out southwards into the Golfo di Augusta and which is flanked by two natural harbors (Xifonio in the east and Megarese in the west). The town used to owe its prosperity mainly to agriculture and the extraction of sea salt. However, war damage has adversely affected the town's appearance and the petroleum boom has played its part. Today the character of Augusta is determined by its various industries (cement factories, chemical and petro-chemical factories, refineries, petroleum docks) and its naval base.
SS 114 Catania-Syracuse; railway station.
Location
Augusta lies on Sicily's eastern coast, 34km/21 mi to the north of Siracusa (Syracuse), on a narrow peninsula which juts out southwards into the Golfo di Augusta and which is flanked by two natural harbors (Xifonio in the east and Megarese in the west). The town used to owe its prosperity mainly to agriculture and the extraction of sea salt. However, war damage has adversely affected the town's appearance and the petroleum boom has played its part. Today the character of Augusta is determined by its various industries (cement factories, chemical and petro-chemical factories, refineries, petroleum docks) and its naval base.
Fortress
In 1232 Emperor Frederick II founded "imperial" Augusta in place of the ancient Xiphonia. The heart of the town was the fortress, a square four-winged building built around an inner courtyard, strengthened in its corners by square towers and in the middle of each side wall by more rectangular or polygonal towers. The double circle of fortifications dates from the 16th and 17th centuries. The original layout of the building (now a prison) is, after many alterations, no longer recognizable, either outside or inside.
San Domenico
The cloister of the Chiesa di San Domenico (13th century) in Augusta is also medieval. After the earthquake of 1693 a number of Baroque buildings were constructed, including the Palazzo Comunale (1699) and the cathedral (1769).
