GERACI SICULO

Geraci Siculo is a town of the Palermo province standing at 1077m a.s.l. and counting nearly 2,400 inhabitants.

It was long dominated by the Arab, from 840 to the early 11^th century. In 1072, it became the capital city of a county bearing its same name. Among the city counts there were the well-known Ventimiglias. In 1438, under Giovanni, one of the family members, the city became, earliest in Sicily, a Marquisate.

The main building is the Chiesa Madre dedicated to the Madonna della Neve. Much altered throughout the centuries, it houses a prized 1400’s painting depicting the Annunciation and a Treasure including reliquaries and chalices.

The Chiesa di Santo Stefano is of possible 1600’s origin. Especially renowned for the splendid baroque stuccoes that adorn its interior and a painting representing the Martyrdom of St. Stephen.

Other buildings deserve a mention such as the 1300’s Chiesa di Sant’Anna – incorporated within the castle of which very few remains. The church is open only on 8 September for the celebration of the Virgin. The 1400’s Chiesa di Santa Maria la Porta, built on the site of an older building, is especially known for housing a 1400’s Byzantine fresco depicting the Virgin and Child; finally there is the 1400’s Collegio di Maria housing a small church.