Description
Via Maqueda, called the Strada Nuova, is one of the most important historic streets of Palermo: a long straight axis that runs from the Teatro Massimo down to the station, cutting the center in two, among Baroque squares, noble palaces and shops.
It was laid out in the late 1500s by the Duke of Maqueda, Bernardino de Cárdenas, viceroy of Sicily. The nobles asked for new areas for their palaces and in the old center it was hard to get around: the project, from 1577, solved both. The street was opened around 1600.
Its great crossing is with the Cassaro, the very ancient street that runs through the city: from above, the two axes draw a cross, which the Palermitans called the Baroque Cross. Where they meet arose the Quattro Canti, the octagonal square that divided the city into four districts.
Along the street you meet the things to see: Piazza Pretoria with its fountain, the church of San Giuseppe dei Teatini, the church of Santa Ninfa dei Crociferi and the Madonna del Soccorso, the Palazzo delle Aquile and Palazzo Comitini.
At its northern end is the Teatro Massimo, with Piazza Verdi. Along the street the palaces alternate: Palazzo Mazzarino, Palazzo Filangeri di Cutò and Palazzo Costantino, and the Galleria delle Vittorie.
In the following centuries the cutting of the street drew intense building activity: palaces of the nobles, churches, convents. That long row of buildings still gives the street its character today, with the former convent of the Theatines, now the Faculty of Law, and the municipal archive.
At the end of 2014 the stretch between the Teatro Massimo and the Quattro Canti was closed to traffic during daytime hours. In August 2019 the stretch up to Piazza Giulio Cesare also became pedestrian, and the street became a shopping street.
So Via Maqueda has become a comfortable, continuous stroll between the main sights of the center: you start from a theater, pass through the Baroque squares and arrive at the station.
It was laid out in the late 1500s by the Duke of Maqueda, Bernardino de Cárdenas, viceroy of Sicily. The nobles asked for new areas for their palaces and in the old center it was hard to get around: the project, from 1577, solved both. The street was opened around 1600.
Its great crossing is with the Cassaro, the very ancient street that runs through the city: from above, the two axes draw a cross, which the Palermitans called the Baroque Cross. Where they meet arose the Quattro Canti, the octagonal square that divided the city into four districts.
Along the street you meet the things to see: Piazza Pretoria with its fountain, the church of San Giuseppe dei Teatini, the church of Santa Ninfa dei Crociferi and the Madonna del Soccorso, the Palazzo delle Aquile and Palazzo Comitini.
At its northern end is the Teatro Massimo, with Piazza Verdi. Along the street the palaces alternate: Palazzo Mazzarino, Palazzo Filangeri di Cutò and Palazzo Costantino, and the Galleria delle Vittorie.
In the following centuries the cutting of the street drew intense building activity: palaces of the nobles, churches, convents. That long row of buildings still gives the street its character today, with the former convent of the Theatines, now the Faculty of Law, and the municipal archive.
At the end of 2014 the stretch between the Teatro Massimo and the Quattro Canti was closed to traffic during daytime hours. In August 2019 the stretch up to Piazza Giulio Cesare also became pedestrian, and the street became a shopping street.
So Via Maqueda has become a comfortable, continuous stroll between the main sights of the center: you start from a theater, pass through the Baroque squares and arrive at the station.