Castroreale: Churches, Art and Mountain Landscapes

Castroreale lies amid the Peloritani Mountains and combines impressive religious buildings, art collections, historical traces and a strong local tradition. This creates a destination where you can combine a tour of the historic centre with cultural discoveries, a mountain route and Sicilian specialities.

Art and Sacred History in the Town Centre

The tour of the historic centre begins at Piazza delle Aquile. One of the main stops is the Duomo, built in the first third of the 17th century and dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Inside is a polyptych of the Nativity, created in 1550 by Giovan Filippo Criscuolo. Another special feature is the sundial with a camera obscura system, designed in 1854 by Nicolò Perroni Basquez.

The Museo Civico is housed in the former Oratorio di San Filippo Neri. Its collections include a Salvator Mundi by Polidoro Caldara da Caravaggio. Another collection awaits you at the Museo Parrocchiale e degli Arredi Sacri, housed in the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli. It preserves five panels from the late 14th century as well as a Flemish triptych from the 16th century.

Several churches also tell of Castroreale’s long history. The Torre di Federico II is the only surviving remnant of the castle that Frederick II of Aragon had built in 1324. From this tower, the panoramic view extends from the Peloritani Mountains to the Aeolian Islands. The Chiesa della Candelora dates from the late 14th century and was probably the chapel of the castle of Frederick II of Aragon. Every year on 2 February, the Feast of Candelora is celebrated there with the blessing of the candles.

The Chiesa di Santa Marina incorporates parts of Castroreale’s fortification system. This includes a tower into which the Chapel of San Lorenzo was integrated. The Chiesa di Sant’Agata preserves an Annunciation by Antonello Gagini from 1519. The statue Cristo Lungo is also carried in procession there on 23 and 25 August, as well as during Holy Week.

Mountain Route, Planetarium and Local Traditions

If you would like to experience the landscape as well as the churches and museums, Itinerario 2 begins in Castroreale. The route is predominantly a mountain route and follows a mule track into the Vallone Pumia. This gives your travel plans a clear landscape dimension in addition to the historic centre, without the town’s cultural highlights fading into the background.

Visits to the Andromeda Digital Planetarium can be reserved by telephone on 349 7167804.

Castroreale is particularly known for its biscuits, including u biscottu castricianu and u biscottu da badissa. The Sagra del Biscotto Castriciano takes place every year in August. The local pastries and the festival give the town’s history a culinary dimension that clearly differs from its paintings, churches and traces of fortifications.

Further destinations for planning your trip to Sicily include San Fratello, Mongiove, Castel di Tusa, Santo Stefano Di Camastra, Savoca, Spadafora, Librizzi and Canneto.

For the main travel overview: Messina.