THE CATHEDRAL OF MESSINA

cathedral in a cloudy May afternoon from mrs Miceli's home

THE HISTORY

This ancient monument, but often destroyed, has been renovated, preserving the original structural features. The Cathedral was built for the first time during the reign of roger II in 1120 and was consecrated on 22 September of 1197.In 1254 at the funeral of Conrad IV, son of Frederick II , the Cathedral suffered a first devastation for a fire, which destroyed the wood panelling of ceiling, same of which fragments are preserved in the regional museum of Messina. Over the years the church was enriched with valuable monuments. Important artists as Di Gregorio, Gagini, Montorsoli, Quagliata and Antonello da Messina worked there, leaving extraordinary works of art, of which very little is left because of earthquakes of 1783 and 1908. Just that in 1908 caused serious damage. Numerous works of art were destroyed, the ceiling and walls collapsed.

THE BELL TOWER

The bell tower of the cathedral of Messina built in Norman times was destroyed by the earthquake of 1783.
In a second time it was rebuilt but later demolished and replaced with two smaller towers.
The main feature is the clock mechanism which not only marks the hours put in motion and gilded bronze statues of mechanical gears with scenes astronomical, religious and towns.

From the bottom there are:
The carousel of weekdays: each day is represented by a pagan deity, carried on a cart pulled by different animals, each wagon changes at midnight.
The carousel of ages: is formed by four life-size statues representing the stages of life that lead to the center stage every fifteen minutes.
The Church of Montalto whose scene recalls his training. at noon on the sound of Ave Maria Shubert, a dove flies by forming a circle soon emerge from the rock church of Montalto.
Biblical scenes change according to the liturgical calendar.
Holy Mother of the Letter: after noon an angel brings the letter to Madonna, the patron saint of Messina.
Dina and Clarenza are two statues representing the heroes who defended the city during a war.

The cock after noon flaps its wings, raises her head and sings three times.

The lion after noon waving a flag, wags its tail and roars three times.

The Perpetual calendar in which an angel with an arrow indicates the day.

The Planetarium shows the solar system.
The moon indicates the moon phases.


By Oriana Agati, Giulia Candido, Viviana Grosso.

photos by Roberto Laganà Vinci

NEPTUNE’S FOUNTAIN

HISTORY

The fountain of Neptune is a monumental fountain in Messina , it ‘s the second work in the city by Giovanni Angelo Montorsoli after the style of Michelangelo. The original position of Neptune ‘s fountain was in front of the facades with the shoulders addressed to the sea, to symbolize the God Neptune that blesses the city of Messina with the treasures of the sea. Today, however, the fountain of Neptune, has been moved further north, and rotated seaward, in fact, totally changing the symbology. In its original position, Neptune’s fountain was perfectly aligned with the other two works made by Montorsoli, Orion’ s fountain, and the Lantern of San Ranieri. The stylization of Neptune’s trident has become the logo of Maserati.

THE STATUE

The God Neptune, as just emerged from the water, calm and invincible, brandishes his formidable trident and keeps the monstrous Scilla and Cariddi chained at his feet. It’s an allegory of moral physical strength to tame adversities. The original statues of Scilla and Cariddi are kept at the local museum.

Since 1934 it stands in the Unità d’Italia Square in front of Government Hall. Originally facing the Spanish walls, and after the destruction caused by the earthquake of 1783 it was placed in front of the "Palace" of Minutoli. It stands on three steps on which it rests a large octagonal basin richly decorated with marine motifs and ten rectangular plinths, each of which are carved in low relief, two dolphins intertwined and engraved with the names of the senators of the time. On the sides, there are oval tanks where lion masks pour water. At the center of the basin, on a square pedestal there is the statuary group with four sea horses on either side and the chained figures of Scilla and Cariddi, at the foot of Neptune. Scilla is represented as a monstrous female figure characterized by eight heads of dogs barking. On the other side, also chained, there is the terrible Cariddi siren, screaming. The right hand is raised with an imperious gesture.

on this board you can see the original position of the statue - up right you can see Cariddi

And finally, here we are. We are your new mates and attend the V year of the Liceum. It was great fun taking these photos for you personally. We wish all the best and hope you like our stories about Messina and some of its landmarks.

This photo by Oriana Agati

Other photos above by mrs Miceli

Article by:

Roberto Laganà Vinci

Chiara La Rosa

Salvatore Lo Miglio

Alessandra Mancuso

Cristian Marchese

LITTLE HOLY MOTHER

At the entrance of Messina’s harbour on the tower of the fort Saint Salvatore, you can find the structure of the Little Holy Mother which it is 35 m high and was made under the patronage of the archibishop Angelo Paino. It was built in 1546 and nowadays is used by the Navy. The reinforced concrete column, covered with stone from Trapani, is sormounted by the statue of the Little Holy Mother in gilt bronze, created by the sculptor Tore Eduardo Calabrò, It is the main landmark of the town for the ones who arrive from the Strait.

Anche di te Madonna parlo
Di te che illumini quel porto
Di quella fiamma intensa
Che riscalda gli animi anche i più duri.
Tu che dall’acque del porto
T’ergi e proteggi e guidi i naviganti,
e benedici l’urbe.

Also about you I speak, Holy Mother

about you who light this harbour

about that strong flame

which heats souls even the hardest

You who from harbour waters

rise and protect and guide seafarers

And bless the urbe*

*town (Latin)

"VOS ET IPSAM CIVITATEM BENEDICIMUS”

It is the sentence contained in the text of the “sacred letter”

In fact, this iscription, which can be read on the base of the monument, is an excerpt from the letter delivered by the Holy Mother to the embassy led by Saint Paul.

The story

After the tradition, in 42 A.D., Saint Paul come to Messina to preach the gospel. When Saint Paul was going to return to Palestina, he asked some among Messina inhabitants to go with him to a meeting with the Virgin Mary in person. Mary received them and in reply to the letter she sent a letter of her own written in jewish rolled up and tied with a lock of her hair where there was this iscription (“Vos et ipsam civitatem benedicimus”), as a sign of protection for the town.

Text By:
Alessia Centorrino
Francesca Esmeralda D’Alessandro
Teresa De Tommaso
Valeria Di Pietro

Photos by mrs Miceli and group

THE “VARA”

One of the most important, suggestive and characteristic traditions of Messina, which falls on the 15th of August, is the “Vara”, reason of pride and unity among the citizens. Its origin date from the XVI century, when, precisely in 1535, Emperor Carlo V was accepted by the Senate and the people of Messina with a chariot whose characters an cosmic symbols were similar to the present ones.


The “Vara” depicts the Assumption into heaven of the Virgin Maria.
It has a pyramidal shape about 14 meters high and weighing 8 tons. This votive machine consist of a structure wrought in iron, called “bell”, which contains complex mechanical gears that animate the apparatus. The whole building rests on a sturdy log equipped with sledges that is pulled, along a specific route, by about a thousand of devotees through two ropes over 110 meters long.

On the first platform of the “Vara” it is shown the lifeless body of the Virgin Maria, upper the seven heavens above that she must cross to reach the Empyrean, even more on a globe surmounted by a series of clouds and surrounded by a host of angels; finally, on the top, an effigy of Jesus Christ holding in his right hand the soul of the Virgin assumed into heaven. Until 1860 all the characters were living persons, after a series of accidents however, they prefer to use paper made representations.

At half the procession, the “Vara” takes a ride called “Girata” (turn) and finally arrives in Piazza Duomo, when the procession ends.

by:

Laura Ciatto

Rosy Di Giacomo

Valeria Morabito

Margie Pirrone

This platform is usually used to tell each other about our respective cultures, lifestyle and traditions. But today it is different. A real tragedy has just stricken Poland and its people with the terrible aircrash in which their President, his wife and many other illustrious members of the Government have lost their lives. Let us express all our participation to the sorrow of our Polish mates.
We embrace you with our thought and friendship from Messina,
Graziella and the mates of Liceo La Farina.

SICILIAN FAMILY TRADITIONS

The traditional Mediterranean culture has had its influence on the central and southern parts of the country where most Italians are shorter with olive skin and dark hair(as in Sicily where I live). Farther north, the people are taller , blond and have lighter eyes, due to the Germanic influence across Alps.

Sicilians love their food, their families, their music and their heritage. We exude confidence, charisma and hospitality.

We are lively, sociable and have passion for everything we do. We express emotion more freely, than most and are not afraid to give hugs, kisses, and displays of affection.We love to laugh and talk loudly, usually emphasizing everything with hand gestures.There are a vast number of religious monuments and paintings as well as local traditions based on Christian celebrations and the lives of the saints.

We are very tied to our family values. So we have an holiday to celebrate mothers (the mother-day) and one to celebrate fathers (the father-day).
We love any reasons to celebrate. Easter and Christmas are joyously planned for and observed by feasts, sweets, decorations, plays and elaborate gifts.

Christmas holiday is considered the most important holiday of the year. In our days when speaking of Christmas we refer to it as a period of time which goes from December 24th to January 6th(this represented by an ugly old lady, the “Befana” who, in the night between january5th and 6th,enters the houses riding a broom, bringing presents and filling socks with candies for the kids who behaved well and coal for the ones who behaved like rascals.

During the period preceding the real holidays is a tradition to set the “presepe” (crib) and the Christmas tree. The presepe is the exact reproduction, by means of small statues of scenes regarding Jesus birth, while the tree is a fir, real or fake, decorated with coloured balls and multicoloured lights.The 8th of march is the women's day and Italian men are going to celebrate it with the traditional gift of yellow mimosas to their lovely women. Some women celebrate this holiday,by having wild women-only nights, going to male stripper shows and so on.

As American traditions are spreading here too, Halloween is surpassing the well-known Italian holiday of Carnevale . Carnevale is still superior, but tendencies are looking undoubtedly more and more in favour to Halloween. Anything goes at carnival.Carnevale is the huge winter festival that is celebrated around the country with parades, masquerade balls, entertainment, music and parties.

We work hard and enjoy our leisure time.It is common for us to work five full days and then a half day on Saturday. We usually take a lengthy lunch break each day, often going home and spending several hours eating and resting, before returning to work for several more.In the evening, hearty meals are adoringly prepared and savoured, and we can often be found strolling and socializing late in the evening.

Food is a thing of beauty in for us. To the foreigner, our food may seem limited to pasta and pizza but nothing could be further from the truth. The food varies from region to region. In Sicily we have a wide range of dishes both salted and sweet, our cooking is very rich in spices, olive oil, frying, sauces, that's why it's sometimes considered a bit difficult to digest. Typical of our region are the famous “caponata, parmigiana, involtini of swordfish or veal, spaghetti alla norma, pasta 'ncaciata” and sweets like “cannoli, cassata alla siciliana, granita, frutta martorana.” Messina is famous all over the world for the “pescestocco alla ghiotta.”

But we don't only think about eating or celebrating. We have very serious traditions too. For example, death is treated in a particular, realistic and dignified way by us. Most people still dress in black or dark colours and wakes are not jovial events.Traditionally, when someone dies in a village in Italy he or she is kept in an open casket at home and friends and neighbours will visit and pay their respect. The family have a full mass at the funeral service and neighbours and friends will follow the pallbearers to the cemetery in a procession while people watch to pay respect. In cities, people are not as closely inter-wined so funerals may be a little different and death notices are put in the newspaper.

by Valentina Capizzuto

The Wawel Dragon in Cracow

The Wawel Dragon, is a famous dragon in Polish folklore. He laired in a cave under the Wawel Hill on the banks of the Vistula river, although some legends place him in the Wawel mountains. In some stories the dragon lived before the founding of the city, when the area was inhabited by farmers.
A popular version of the Wawel Dragon tale takes place in Cracow during the reign of king Krakus the city's legendary founder. Each day the evil dragon would beat a path of destruction across the countryside, killing people, pillaging their homes and devouring their livestock. In many versions of this story, the dragon especially enjoyed eating young girls, and could only be appeased if the townfolk would leave a young girl in front of his cave once a month. The King certainly wanted to put a stop to that awful situation, but his bravest knights fell to the dragon's fiery breath. In the versions involving the sacrifice of young girls, every girl in the city was eventually sacrificed except one, the King's daughter Wanda. In desperation, the King promised his beautiful daughter's hand in marriage to anybody who could defeat the dragon. Great warriors from near and far fought for the prize and failed. One day, a poor cobbler's apprentice named Dratewka accepted the challenge. He stuffed a lamb with sulphur and set it outside the dragon's cave. The dragon ate it and soon became incredibly thirsty. No amount of water could quell his stomach ache, and after swelling up from drinking half of the Vistula river, he exploded. The apprentice married the King's daughter as promised and they lived happily ever after.
(Poland)