Palazzo Adriano

Colony of Greek-Albanian origin, of feudal foundation (1482) by the Commenda of the Teutonic Knights of the Church of the Magione in Palermo, Palazzo Adriano is characterized by an articulated urban layout in several directions, converging on Piazza Umberto I, governed by two axes main that identify four sections of development: the nucleus of the first plant, around the medieval castle, and the three subsequent expansions of the seventeenth centuries,) (VIII and XIX. Among the most important architectural emergencies are the churches of Santa Maria Assunta (XV century ..), of the Greek rite, and of Santa Maria del Lume (XVIII century), of the Latin rite, which face each other in Piazza Umberto I, where the Dara and Mancuso palaces still face and there is a beautiful seventeenth-century octagonal fountain Palazzo Adriano, together with Bivona, is the seat of the Monti Sicani Park Authority.

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In the historic center of Palazzo Adriano there is the large and harmonious square Umberto I in which there is the seventeenth-century octagonal fountain; the churches, the castle, and ancient citadels and arches that reflect ancient defensive needs. The Oscar film "Nuovo Cinema Paradiso '' 'by director Giuseppe Tornatore was shot almost entirely in this natural setting.
 
One of the least contaminated environments of our peninsula is the Sosio valley rich in animal and plant life to be declared a nature reserve. In it there is also a geo-naturalistic panorama of the highest geological level with the unique and rare geological evidence of the Permian era: the "Solomon's stone", the largest of the blocks, about 200 meters long and m. 30 the "mecca of the Saracens", about m. 30 accessible at the top thanks to a staircase carved into the rock. These outcrops rich in fossil faunas dating back to the Paleozoic era, are among the oldest geological finds on earth, which have given fame to this area among paleontologists from all over the world.
 
In this natural environment stands the mountain of roses whose name derives from the spontaneous growth of thornless peony roses that bloom in February. In it the legends of Santa Rosalia, at whose passage the peony roses would bloom, and the Norcia cave, which would be full of treasures protected by spell, joins the altimetric eminence (1453) with its vast panorama in which Etna it seems very close.
 
The complexity of religious recurrences and the liveliness in the organization of local festivals is essentially due to the presence of two ethnic groups: a heart that beats simultaneously in the West and in the East.
 
The development of the awareness of the value of ancient traditions has led to the enhancement of the exceptional significance of various surviving traditions in Palazzo Adriano and to the recovery of those which have set. On the occasion of the Epiphany, in the Byzantine rite a solemn religious ceremony takes place in the main square of the town near the octagonal fountain. The priest blesses the waters in which it descends from the bell tower of the church in SS. Assunta, a dove representing the Holy Spirit. The oranges that adorn the fountain are then distributed to those present.