Comiso, Sicily and the Castle of the Naselli

Visit Comiso

The Sicilian town of Comiso is situated to the south of the island, a few kilometres to the north-west of Ragusa, and south-east of Gela. Comiso is especially well endowed with important historic monuments, including the Castle of the Naselli and several noteworthy churches.

Explore Comiso

The first stop on your visit could be the Castle of the Naselli, towards the north of Comiso. The castle was built and expanded over an extended period, from the 14th to the 16th centuries, on the site of a much older edifice dating back to the classical era - some of the inscriptions and statues from the the original structure are incorporated in the medieval building.

The castle includes two towers (one round, one square), a 14th century iron gate in the older part of the castle and a lodge dating from the 16th century. The Baptistery is the oldest remaining part of the castle and includes some parts of Byzantine frescoes from the 11th century.

Comiso Churches

There are many interesting and important churches in Comiso and we can do little more here than list the highlights, among which:

- the Mother Church of Santa Maria delle Stelle (15th century, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake), features a dome, a tower and a wooden ceiling painted with 17th century frescoes.

- the Church of the Annunciation (16th century, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake), neoclassical style with a 19th century dome and a monumental stairway, contains several important paintings and a woodedn crucifix

- the Church of the Capuchins, highlights include a tabernacle with wooden carvings and friezes, and interesting cemetery.

- the Church of San Francesco the Immaculate (originally built in the 14th century) has a small dome over the apse inspired by the Arab-Gothic style, and the adjacent convent of the Friars Minor, with a cloister

- the Church of San Biagio (16th century, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake) has a very impressive facade

- the Church of Jesus and the adjacent chapel of the Filipino father also has an interesting facade and also an 18th century wooden ceiling

More Comiso highlights

Also recommended during your visit to Comiso is a trip to the civic museum (in the Old Fish Market, Piazza delle Erbe), with its substantial collection of fossils and shells.

Places to visit close to Comiso

Nearby close to the town of Victoria you can visit the ruins of the ancient city of Camarina to see some very ancient walls, a tower, and the remains of variou Hellenistic houses. Also see the remains of the temple of Athena, from the 5th century BC and called 'Athenaion'.

Note: photo is copyright.

You can find more local travel ideas in the South-West Sicily guide,