Museo Archeologico Regionale "Paolo Orsi", Syracuse
The new museum was founded in 1967 and is hosted within a modern building, opened in 1988. It was named after the famous archeologist Paolo Orsi (1859-1935), who was head of the Antiquities Department of Sicily for more than 30 years. The museum is fundamental in the understanding of Sicily, from the prehistory of nearly all the main archaeological sites in Central and Eastern Sicily, to the end of the classical period.

Highlights: funerary statue from the digs of Megara Hyblaea (560-550 BC); Venus Anadyomene; the Syracuse Bust (4th-5th centuries BC); Enthroned Goddess (6th century BC).

Galleria Regionale di Sicilia - Palazzo Abatellis, Palermo
The building was designed by Carnalivari at the end of the 15th century as the residence of Francesco Abatellis, harbormaster of the Kingdom of the two Sicilies. The palace is one of the most significant Gothic-Catalan architectonic samples in Western Sicily. Its gallery features sculptures and paintings from the 12th to the 18th century.

Highlights: the Triumph of Death fresco; the Annunciation by Antonello da Messina; The Malvagna Triptych by Mabuse; fine collection of statues by Antonello Gagini and Francesco Laurana.

Address: Via Alloro 4, Palermo Tel.: (091) 616 43 17 Fax: (091) 617 21 87 Web site: www.regione.sicilia.it General Information Mon., Wed., Fri. & Sat.: 9:00am-1:30pm; Tue. & Thu. : 9:00am-1:30pm; 3:00pm-7:30pm; Sun.: 9:00am-1:00pm Duration of visit: 1 to 2 hours Entrance: € 4.50

Museo Archeologico Regionale "Antonino Salinas", Palermo
Housed in a 17th century monastery, the museum boasts the various artistic periods and civilizations of Western Sicily from prehistory to the late Roman period. The small entrance of the museum leads to a cloister which, divided into three rooms at the end, displays magnificent pieces from the nearby archeological site of Selinunte.

Highlights: treasures from the archeological excavations of Selinunte.

Museo Archeologico Regionale, Agrigento
Located on the outskirts of the town in Contrada San Nicola, the museum exhibits the history of the ancient city of Agrigento and its territory from prehistory to the period of Hellenization. Its original collection, from the Civic Museum, consisted of numerous items discovered during excavations conducted at the beginning of the 20th century.

Highlights: collection of archeological finds from the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento and nearby cities.

Museo Regionale di Messina
The building hosting the museum was originally the Barbera-Mellinghoff spinning-mill, a late nineteenth-century construction used after the great earthquake of 1908. The museum illustrates the development of art and culture in Messina from the 12th to the 18th centuries, with outstanding artworks by such renowned artists as Antonello da Messina, Girolamo Alibrandi, Polidoro and Caravaggio.

Highlights: Madonna and child by Francesco Laurana; Polypthic by Antonello da Messina; the Raising of Lazarus and the Nativity by Caravaggio (1608-1609).

Museo Regionale "Agostino Pepoli", Trapani
The museum originated from the private collection of the count Agostino Pepoli, a strong promoter of the institution at the beginning of the 20th century. Other significant additions have come from deconsecrated convents in Trapani and the Fardelliana Art Gallery, a rich collection of works of the Neapolitan school donated by the General G. B. Fardella. The museum is housed in a 14th century Carmelite convent which was significantly redesigned between the 16th and 18th centuries.

Highlights: San Giacomo Maggiore, statue by Antonello Gagini; Polypthic of Trapani (15th century); Pietà, statue by Roberto di Oderisiso (14th century); Madonna col Bambino e Angeli by Pastura (1478-1509).

Museo delle Saline, Trapani
This museum illustrates the history of the salt-works and the antique practice of salt extraction.

Aeolian Archeological Museum, Lipari (Messina)
This museum is divided in different buildings including an old castle built during the Spanish domination. It holds archeological finds that boast the history of the Aeolian Islands from the prehistory to classical period.

Highlights: classic archeological section of the museum; submarine archeology.

Galleria Regionale del Palazzo Bellomo, Syracuse
The museum is housed in a building from the Swabian period which was transformed and enlarged in the 15th century by the Bellomo family in Syracuse. The gallery illustrates the development of painting and decorative art in Syracuse and Southeast Sicily.

Highlights: Annunciation by Antonello da Messina; Il Seppellimento di Santa Lucia by Caravaggio.

Museo Mandralisca, Cefalù
This museum was founded by the Baron of Mandralisca in the 19th century. It includes examples of archeological, and coin and shell collections. It also houses an art gallery with more than 9,000 scientific works.

Highlights: Portrait of a Man by Antonello da Messina (1470); Christ on Judgment Day by Johannes de Matta (16th century); View of Cefalù by Francesco Bevilacqua.

Casa Museo di Antonino Uccello, Palazzolo Acreide (Syracuse)
The museum is named after its founder, the poet and anthropologist Antonino Uccello. The museum is located in a wing of Palazzo Ferla, built on pre-existing factories after the earthquake of 1963. Uccello re-created the environments of a rural house typical of Monti Iblei.