Description
Porta Nuova is Palermo's monumental gate next to the Norman Palace, where the Cassaro begins: for centuries it was the main way into the city by land, on the road to Monreale. It is a triumphal arch crowned by a roof of colorful majolica tiles.
The side facing Monreale is the most curious: four telamons depict the Moors defeated by Charles V, and the two in the middle have their limbs cut off as a sign of submission. Up top is a white marble loggia with five arches and, above it, the pyramid-shaped roof of majolica with eagles with outspread wings.
The gate commemorates the triumphal entry of Charles V in 1535, on his way back from Tunis, and was built in 1583 by the viceroy Marcantonio Colonna. The Senate called it Porta Austriaca, but to the people it stayed Porta Nuova.
In 1667 lightning set off the gunpowder stored inside and destroyed it almost completely: Gaspare Guercio rebuilt it in 1669.
The side facing Monreale is the most curious: four telamons depict the Moors defeated by Charles V, and the two in the middle have their limbs cut off as a sign of submission. Up top is a white marble loggia with five arches and, above it, the pyramid-shaped roof of majolica with eagles with outspread wings.
The gate commemorates the triumphal entry of Charles V in 1535, on his way back from Tunis, and was built in 1583 by the viceroy Marcantonio Colonna. The Senate called it Porta Austriaca, but to the people it stayed Porta Nuova.
In 1667 lightning set off the gunpowder stored inside and destroyed it almost completely: Gaspare Guercio rebuilt it in 1669.