Ortygia - auf der Insel

The strategic position of Hotel Cavalieri, between the island Ortigia and the Archaeological Parc Neapolis, allows you to visit the Syracusan monuments very conveniently.

We recommend visiting the city Siracusa (Syracuse) and its unique wonders with the bicycle or scooter. Our Concierge Service gladly organizes a private professional guided tour for you. Please contact us for any further information you might need info@hotelcavalierisiracusa.it

The island Ortigia (Ortygia) is the spiritual and physical heart of the city. It is a living museum of a succession of epochs - Greek, Norman, Aragonese and baroque - purposefully combined in a harmonious symmetry. In recent years Ortigia (Ortygia) has undergone some serious renovations, making it shine with a bright new lustrs; it has also gone car-free, which means that the town now breathes with clean lungs (and so will you).


Temple of Apollo
Converted into a church in Byzantine times and into a mosque under Arab rule.

Cathedral
The Cathedral was built by bishop Zosimo in the 7th century over the great Temple of Athens (5th century BC), on the Ortygia island. This was a Doric edifice with 6 columns on the short sides and 14 on the long ones: these can still be seen incorporated in the walls of the current church. The base of the Greek edifice had three steps. The interior of the church has a nave and two aisles. The roof of the nave is from Norman times, as well as the mosaics in the apses. The façade was rebuilt by Andrea Palma in 1725-1753, with a double order of Corinthian columns, and statues by Ignazio Marabitti. The most interesting pieces of art inside are a font with marble basin (12th-13th century), a silver statue of St. Lucy by Pietro Rizzo (1599), a ciborium by Luigi Vanvitelli, and a statue of the Madonna della Neve ("Madonna of the Snow", 1512) by Antonello Gagini.

Square Cathedral

Palazzo Municipale
North of the Cathedral is the Palazzo Municipale or Palazzo Senatoriale, built in 1629 by the Spanish architect Juan Vermexio, nicknamed "Il lucertolone" or "the lizard". In recent years, excavations beneath the building have uncovered the unfinished remains of an Ionic temple, better known as the "couch of Artemis", to whom Ortigia was dedicated. The mansion now serves as the city hall. Attached to the cathedral's southerns side is the elegant, 17th-century Palazzo Arcivescovile, which is home to the Biblioteca Alagoniana and some rare 13th-century manuscripts. In the northwestern corner of the square is the Palazzo Beneventano del Bosco, which has a pretty 18th-century facade, while at its southern end is the Chiesa di Santa Lucia alla Badia, dedicated to St Lucy, the city's patron saint, who was martyred at Siracusa (Syracuse) during the reign of the Roman emperor Diocletian.

Fountain of Arethusa
Just south of Piazza del Duomo, along Via Picherali, is the Fontana Aretusa, where fresh water bubbles up as it did in acient times when it was the city's main water supply. According to a legend, the nymph Arethusa, hunted by Alpheus, took shelter here.Now populated by ducks, grey mullets and papyrus plants, the fountain is the place to hang out on summer evenings.

Fountain Aretusa

Museo Regionale d'Arte Medioevale e Moderna, Museo di Palazzo Bellomo
Housed in Ortigia's finest Catalan-Gothic mansion, the 13th-century Palazzo Bellomo has a sizable collcection of sculpture and painting dating from the Middle Ages up to the 20th century. Highlights include Byzantine icons and Spanish paintings and lots of bloodthirsty religious painting, of which La Strage degli Innocenti (The Murder of the Innocents) stand out for its ferocious energy. Other exceptional pieces are Antonello da Messina's Annunciazione (Annunciation; 1474) and Caravaggio's La Sepoltura di Santa Lucia (The Burial of St Lucy; 1609).
Mo-Fri 9am-13.00pm; Su 9am-1am

Castello Maniace
The Castello Maniace, constructed between 1232 and 1240, is an example of the military architecture of Frederick II's reign. It is a square structure with circular towers at each of the four corners. The most striking feature is the pointed portal, decorated with polychrome marbles.
Opening Hours: Tu-Sat 9.00am-1.00am

Maniace Castle

Our Concierge Service gladly organizes your stay in Siracusa (Syracuse). Please contact us for any further information you might need info@hotelcavalierisiracusa.it