Il Castello della Zisa
The Zisa, built in the 12th century, was conceived during the Norman domination in Sicily, during the reign of William I, but it was finished only under William II. The palace was built in the Arab way by Arabian craftsmen, as was the case for the construction of other royal residences. The architects were inspired by the royal buildings of North Africa and Egypt, making the Zisa into a prime example for the strong connections between Sicily and the Islamic cultural world of the Mediterranean. Since 2015, the Zisa has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List as one of the sites of “ Arab-Norman Palermo and the Cathedral Churches of Cefalù and Monreale,” a series of buildings that bears witness to a time characterized by the fruitful coexistence of people of different origins (Muslim, Byzantine, Latin, Jewish, Lombard, and French).
Admission Included