Palermo Underground by carlo Bevilacqua

the crypt of the church of Sant...ed, of the two Confraternities.

the crypt of the church of Santa Maria dei Cocchieri (Coachmenâ€™s) Chapel The Cocchieri crypt is the hidden jewel of the church of Santa Maria dellâ€™Itria alla Kalsa, in Via Alloro. The church, commissioned by the Confraternity of Coachmen, was completed in 1611 over the crypt of the Confraternity of Carters. The Sepulchral crypt is a vast underground room with a rectangular layout which extends below the church and the churchyard and is divided into two sections by a large staircase: on the walls of the spacious premises are the remains of ninety burial recesses, intended to house the mummified bodies of the monks. On the lower floor are the â€œputridarium premisesâ€, a veritable church used for religious services, mainly the suffrage of the deceased, of the two Confraternities.

Crypt of the Carpenters. Under ... miraculous by popular beliefs.

Crypt of the Carpenters. Under the small baroque oratory located inside the convent of San Giuseppe dei Teatini, now owned by the University of Palermo, there is an underground crypt, an underground church dedicated to the Madonna della Provvidenza. The crypt is not accessible and houses an aquifer considered miraculous by popular beliefs.

In the complex of the Municipal...portant pilgrimage destination.

In the complex of the Municipal Library of Casa Professa there is an underground of extraordinary interest, whose original function was that of burial place. Chapels, niches and tombs are still visible. It seems that in 1500 a sacristan would have profaned some coffins, to deprive them of money and precious objects contained. Having found nothing, however, he devised to paint an image of the Madonna to attract the faithful. They ran and donated substantial alms, a treasure with which he escaped. But the unpredictable happened: the Madonna began to really weep and the place became an important pilgrimage destination.

The Entrance of the Municipal Library of Casa Professa

Miqveh. Palazzo Marchesi Mikveh... not collected with containers.

Miqveh. Palazzo Marchesi Mikveh is a bath used for the purpose of ritual immersion in Judaism] to achieve ritual purity. The Mikveh of Palermo is located inside the cloister of the Casa Professa dei Gesuiti church, inside what was once the Jewish quarter of the city. it was used mainly by women: after menstruation and after giving birth, the women went down into an underground room full of water, reached by about ten steps about twenty centimeters high, to totally immerse themselves and thus purify themselves. The water of the Mikveh had to be pure, that is of spring, of river or even rain, provided it was not collected with containers.

Crypt of the Repentants The sec...bess that today are on display.

Crypt of the Repentants The secret graves of the prostitutes who had become nuns Itâ€™s a crypt that holds the secrets of the sixteenth century convent of Santa Maria la Grazia (the gift), or of the Grazia, better known as the Convent of the Repentites. Here the former prostitutes who had converted to monastic life were kept by the courtesans still in service through a tax paid to the Senate of Palermo, a sort of â€œporno taxâ€ ahead of its time. The tribute was due by law to be allowed to wear splendid clothes, like honourable women, in public. Discovered by the University in 2005, during the restoration works of the overlying building, the crypt where nuns were buried revealed an intriguing backstage: some scrolls found inside two glass ampullas in the grave of the mother abbess that today are on display.

Sirocco room of Villa Naselli T...and the gurgling of the waters.

Sirocco room of Villa Naselli The ancient cool underground passages where the nobles had a good time The sirocco room of Villa Naselli ALliata is a fascinating place full of atmosphere, with a story that starts from the Middle Ages. The room, unique in size and airiness, consists of a large gallery and a hall, underground and crossed by a spring water channel. Farmers called these channels â€œu toccuâ€ (the wind tower) and â€œu passiaturiâ€ (the gallery). Even today, the same old tunnels carry the circulation of fresh air and the expulsion of the hot one, creating a cool climate during the hottest days. But in the chronicles of Palermo this room is also famous for the summer celebrations on elegant carpets, with the scent of flowers and the gurgling of the waters.

The qanat - channels in Arabic ... professionals, called muqanni.

The qanat - channels in Arabic - that, following the particular conformations of the ground and the friable morphology of the rock, were built to bring water to the surface, intercepting the natural layers of the ground. This technique, of Persian origin, was performed by particular professionals, called muqanni.

The Beati Paoli Cave. Beati Pao...to â€œCamera dello Sciroccoâ€.

The Beati Paoli Cave. Beati Paoli is the name of a secretive sect thought to have existed in medieval Sicily. The sect, as described by the author Luigi Natoli in his historic novel I Beati Paoli (written as a series under the pseudonym William Galt in 1909, then re-published as books in 1921 and 1949), resembles an order of knights fighting for the poor and the commoners.Whereas the novel is fictitious, Sicilyâ€™s history bears some evidence that the Beati Paoli actually existed. It is the opinion of many scholars of the past who have had the opportunity to visit over time the environment that it was part of the catacombal complex of Porta dâ€™Ossuna and that subsequently the environment was used for other purposes. The presence of the seat carved directly along the circumference of the hypogeum, the presence of the square-shaped shaft about four meters deep, clogged with debris and the hole in the vault, suggests that the whole room has been adapted to â€œCamera dello Sciroccoâ€.

The crypt of the oratory of the...r a drying and pouring process.

The crypt of the oratory of the church of Santa Maria del Carmine is accessible through a trapdoor. The crypt is divided into three rooms: the one where the bodies to be buried were prepared, the colatoio and the burial room where there are 34 loculi decorated with majolica. Inside the crypt there are traces of human remains probably belonging to the Carmelite friars who were buried there after a drying and pouring process.

Sirocco Room The cave dug in th...it to be returned to public use

Sirocco Room The cave dug in the rock in the park taken away from the mafia A sirocco room dug in the rock from which the entrance to a qanat can be seen. Going down the steps visitors reach some natural seats, can enjoy the coolness and appreciate the geologic stratifications and the surrounding lovely vegetation.This is the gem of a park with a surface of about two hectars news of which dates back to 1400 and that, through various vicissitudes over the course of centuries, has arrived intact up to the present day. It had belonged to a mafia family for many years. In 1980 it was confiscated by the then investigating magistrate Giovanni Falcone, and in 1999 it was assigned to Agesci (Association of Italian Catholic Scouts and Guides), that rescued it from degradation and turned it into a Scout base. The intervention of superintendency has allowed it to be returned to public use

carlo Bevilacqua

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