Sperlinga, the Sicilian Town Sculpted on the Rock

Sperlinga is a small Sicilian village included in the list of the most beautiful medieval towns of Italy. It is located in the heart of my beloved island, amid a breathtaking landscape made of stone, nature and tradition.

The main feature of this village is that the town is fully built on the rock and consists of an agglomerate of 50 grottos shaping the historical center, the downtown and the surroundings. For this feature, Sperlinga is also called the Matera of Sicily. Matera, in fact, is a city, in another region of Italy, which is popular for being built just on the rock!

Since I am Sicilian, and, here, I discuss only about Sicily, this post is dedicated to discover more about the wonders of Sperlinga. Keep yourself glued to your screen, then, and enjoy this new travel guide about a really mesmerizing Sicilian town.

Sperlinga: Origin of the Name

The name of Sperlinga comes from a Greek term meaning born from the rock. The Sicilian name is Spillinga, and, literally, it means grottos. The Greek word, instead, means Spelonca in Italian, which also means grottos. This is the proof that the village has been built on the rock and influenced by the Greeks, in ancient times.

Sperlinga. Tourist Information

The village of Sperlinga is nestled amid the Nebrodi and the Madonie mounts. It is exactly located in the heart of the inland of Sicily, in the province of Enna, about 15 kms from the other popular village of Gangi, in the province of Palermo.

The downtown unwinds amid medieval lanes and a picturesque landscape sculpted on the rock.

The town is so small to be considered a hamlet. It has, in fact, less than 700 inhabitants.

Another weird and original feature of this village is that there aren’t shops and restaurants. Indeed, Sicilian souvenirs and delicious local recipes are sold straight from the same inhabitants who still live in picturesque houses sculpted on the rock.

These picturesque homes are often decorated with the most iconic symbols of Sicily’s tradition, such as Sicilian chariot, wine bottles, coffa bag, carpets. Every piece is unique and handmade. You can also buy it, if you want.

As soon as you visit these homes, today turned into real open sky museums, you’ll have the impression of storming into the ancient and authentic Sicilian scenery of two centuries ago.  

Another important symbol of Sperlinga is a big sandstone rock that you can also admire at a distance. It is just on this rock that the town arises.

Every year, tons of tourists visit this destination to admire the giant stone where it was built. Today, Sperlinga is officially considered as the town sculpted on the stone. No other village in the world has this amazing peculiarity. To admire the main tourist attractions, you must go through picturesque rocky lanes that give the stunning sensation to travel back into time.

You can easily walk them on foot. When you arrive in the village, in fact, you can leave your car in one of the many free parking lots nearby the tourist attractions.

Go to the following paragraph to discover them.

What to See in Sperlinga

The entire village of Sperlinga is considered a royal rocky home, because its main attractions were built by the kings who dominated Sicily in the past centuries. The things you absolutely must see are the castle, the churches and the grottoes.

Let’s explore them in detail.

Medieval Castle

The medieval castle is a rare example of a rocky fortress built on sandstone rock. It dates back to the Siculi and the Byzantines. The over the rock part dates back to 1200, instead.

The castle has been the dwelling of many noble Sicilian families, such as the Ventimiglia, the Oneto, the Russo, the Nicosia and the Scaglione.

The castle became popular for the vicissitudes of the Sicilian Vespers. The latter were the riots that exploded in Palermo in 1282 to fight against the Aragoneses, masters of Sicily since 1266.

The castle was just the shelter of a few French soldiers who, along with a group of Sicilians of Sperlinga, opposed a strong resistance for 13 months before surrendering definitively.

As regards this episode, a legend tells that the local Sicilians, locked in the castle, rang the bells of the sheep to make believe to have still the animals with them, while, in reality, they milked the breast of their women to produce small pieces of cheese thrown out of the walls of the castle.

This legend is recalled by the inscription on the top of the fortress and visible on the arch of the entrance. The inscription reads:

"Quod Siculis placuit, sola Sperlinga negavit". “What was established by the Sicilians, only Sperlinga denied it”.

The castle is open every day from 9.30 AM to 5.30 PM.

The visit has a cost of 3 euros. You can buy the ticket at the local bar.

Furthermore, every night, from 9 to 9.30 PM, the fortress and the tower are illuminated with picturesque games of light.

Grottoes

The entire rocky village, in the South of the Medieval Castle, is formed by overlapping rows of grottoes. They are about 50 and connected among them through scenic lanes and narrow steps engraved on the same stone.

The poor families of Sperlinga inhabited these grottoes until the 1960s. After these years, these families were totally evicted and relocated to more normal and cozy homes. The few still inhabited grottoes are, in reality, museums and shops where you can taste and buy the local products of the village.

 Churches

There are three fascinating churches in Sperlinga. The Mother Church, dating back to the Renaissance, the Church of the Madonna della Mercede, dating back to the 1700 and housing a wooden cross previously placed in the internal church of rock, and the Church of the Convent, built by Duke Stefano Oneto.

Even though these churches enjoy the particular rocky architecture, they are worth a visit during your tour in the village.

What to Eat in Sperlinga

To dive into the true atmosphere of Sperlinga, you must taste the local cheeses, such as the caciocavallo, piacentino, ricotta cheese and the delicious Sicilian cassata cake, as well.

Don’t forget to taste the frascatela (hard wheat flour dough with lard and broccoli).

A special mention deserves the tortone, a sweet made with oil fried dough of bread and sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon.

You can eat these treats during your tour in Sperlinga. Just buy a ticket at the local bar and you’ll be able to taste the local food at the rocky houses equipped as ancient taverns (see the image).

What to Do in Sperlinga

In this wonderful village, you can also attend seasonal events, such as the historical parade of the ladies of the castles of Sicily, which takes place on August, 16. That is a stunning parade recalling the Sicilian Vespers. On the occasion, men and women wear medieval clothing, accompanied by the sound of music coming from the terrace of the Castle.

Just on the same date, under the same castle, you can taste the tortone (big cake) which gives rise to the namesake festival. The pastry is accompanied with local wine and products made by true Sicilian artisans.

On December 6, instead, you can admire a picturesque and evocative living nativity scene which brings you back to a timeless age, allowing you to relive the magical emotions of Christmas.

Curiosity about Sperlinga

Even though this small Sicilian village is still partially unknown, it became popular in the Second World War thanks to American photographer Robert Capa. It is just in Sperlinga that Robert Capa shot the most iconic photo describing the war in Sicily.

The mentioned image dates back to August, 6, 1943 and depicts the exact moment in which a Sicilian peasant, equipped with a stick, pointed the road to an American soldier (see the image). The encounter, made immortal by this picture, took place in a countryside street called Capostrà.

This photo raised so much amazement which became popular all over the world. Today, it is the emblem of the eternal alliance among Americans and Sicilians and the symbol of freedom from the Second World Conflict.

How to Reach Sperlinga

You can reach Sperlinga from Palermo, Catania or Comiso Airports. From these ones, you can take a taxi, a car, the train or a bus to reach the city of Enna. From Enna, you’ll find local buses which drive you to Sperlinga. From Palermo, instead, you can reach Gangi, where are about six buses taking tourists to Sperlinga.

For more information about how to reach the village, you can call this mobile phone: + 39 3488724073.

You’ll receive a reply by a local tourist guide who also advises you where to eat and how to organize the tour to visit Sperlinga.

Instead, to find an accommodation near this village, you can check this page.

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this travel guide about Sperlinga, the small village sculpted on the rock. I also hope you’ll visit it very soon, because this Sicilian destination is a place rich in history and culture, but, above all, full of the most authentic and genuine Sicilian tradition. 

Photocredits:

Viverelasicilia.com

Wikimedia Commons

Paesionline.it

Scoprienna.com

Fondoambiente.it

Larepubblica.it

Ennamagazine.it

Robert Capa