Centuripe Attractions
Communications
SS 192 and A 19 Catania-Enna, turning-off from either road at Catenanuova; from there 13km/8mi northwards on a winding road.
Location
The agricultural center of Centúripe has a superb situation on a rounded mountain-top between the valleys of the Simeto (to the northeast) and the Dittaino (to the southwest (view of Mount Etna).
History
There was a Sikel town here which was given the name Kentoripa by the Greeks and which provides evidence of the extent to which the cultural influence of the Sicilian Greek towns had penetrated into the interior as early as the sixth/fifth centuries B.C. From early in the third century B.C. the town developed its own individual ceramic production with vivid powerful colors which were achieved by the combination of encaustic and tempera. Because of its strategic position Centúripe was frequently fought over until in 263 B.C. it became Roman and was classified, according to Cicero, as one of the few free and tax-exempt towns (Civitates liberae atque immunes) in Sicily. The Emperor Frederick II destroyed Centúripe in 1233 because of an uprising. In 1548 it was refounded.
SS 192 and A 19 Catania-Enna, turning-off from either road at Catenanuova; from there 13km/8mi northwards on a winding road.
Location
The agricultural center of Centúripe has a superb situation on a rounded mountain-top between the valleys of the Simeto (to the northeast) and the Dittaino (to the southwest (view of Mount Etna).
History
There was a Sikel town here which was given the name Kentoripa by the Greeks and which provides evidence of the extent to which the cultural influence of the Sicilian Greek towns had penetrated into the interior as early as the sixth/fifth centuries B.C. From early in the third century B.C. the town developed its own individual ceramic production with vivid powerful colors which were achieved by the combination of encaustic and tempera. Because of its strategic position Centúripe was frequently fought over until in 263 B.C. it became Roman and was classified, according to Cicero, as one of the few free and tax-exempt towns (Civitates liberae atque immunes) in Sicily. The Emperor Frederick II destroyed Centúripe in 1233 because of an uprising. In 1548 it was refounded.
Castello di Corradino
Near the Piazzale Belvedere in the southeast of Centúripe can be seen the Castello di Corradino, which is not in fact a medieval building, but the remains of a Roman mausoleum, from which there is a beautiful view of the Plain of Catania and Mount Etna.
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Other Ancient Remains
In the immediate surrounding area of Centúripe there are other ancient remains: in the Vallone Difesa a Roman building, which has been shown to be the seat of the emperor-worshipping Augustans; in the Vallone dei Bagni there are thermal baths; in the Contrada Panneria a Hellinistic house. Finally parts of the town wall have been preserved in several places.
