Palazzo Landolina di Sant’Alfano was the summer residence of one of the richest and most powerful families in the city. Inside are splendid frescoes and paintings from the 18th and 19th centuries. It is one of the monuments included by UNESCO in the World Heritage Sites, within the serial site Late Baroque Towns of the Val Di Noto.
The history of Landolina Palace in Noto
The Landolina Palace is a splendid noble palace located next to the Cathedral of Noto. Built in 1730, it was the summer residence of the Landolina family. This was the oldest and most illustrious family in Noto, who arrived in the city in 1090 in the entourage of Roger the Norman. They ruled Noto for about eight centuries and were present at all the subsequent courts in Sicily. The importance of this family is evidenced by the fact that, between 1838 and 1844, King Ferdinand II of Bourbon and Queen Maria Theresa of Austria stayed three times at Palazzo Landolina. This event is testified by the presence of two marble plaques, walled in the entrance staircase. Damaged during the revolutionary uprisings, they are now exhibited in the Museo Civico di Noto. The palace, after being restored, now houses a prestigious hotel.
Architecture and interior of Landolina Palace in Noto
The design of Palazzo Landolina in Noto is attributed to the architect Vincenzo Sinatra. The façade, made of shaped stones, has an elegant neoclassical style. It is divided into three horizontal orders supported by square pilasters crowned by fine Corinthian capitals. The windows and balconies are surmounted by elegant rectangular lintels. At the top of the roof there is a stele with the coat of arms of the Landolina family. Passing through the entrance gate, one enters a large courtyard where there were once stables and warehouses. Immediately on the right, a monumental staircase decorated with two statues of sphinxes leads to the upper floors. Inside the Landolina Palace there are many rooms where you can admire different frescoes. The main hall has gilded walls and paintings from the 18th and 19th centuries.
Largo Landolina and the War Memorial
Just in front of the Landolina Palace in Noto there is an exedra, a semicircular square more commonly called Piazza Landolina. Here there is a monument to the fallen of the First World War, created by the sculptor Saverio Sortini. Along the walls of the square a series of plaques instead commemorate the fallen of the Second World War. In the last period of the Bourbon reign, a statue of King Ferdinand II stood in this place. The work, created by the Neapolitan sculptor Tito Angelini, was destroyed during the revolts of 1860. Some fragments are now exhibited in the Civic Museum of Noto.
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