The ancient settlement of Niscemi, today a large agricultural centre, is located on the slopes of the Iblei mountain range on a flat plain at about 332m above sea level. The name derives from the word nixenum (Syrians) and reflects Roman and Arab influences. The town’s architecture, spaces in the centre, churches and buildings are the result of the Baroque style rebuilding after the earthquake that devastated the Noto Valley in 1693.
The heart of the historical centre is piazza Vittorio Emanuele III, where the Chiesa Madre, dedicated to Santa Maria d’Itria, the Church of the Addolorata and the neoclassical town hall, built between 1870 and 1892, are located.
On the edge of the historical centre is a circular shaped belvedere, a panoramic viewpoint over the Gela plain, which was built in the early 1800s and has wrought iron railings.
At the edge of the city, on a territory of about 3,000 hectares is the Sugherata Nature Reserve with its numerous species of flora and fauna, especially the cork oaks which give the park its name.
Sicilia Film Commission
Via Emanuele Notarbartolo 9 — 90141 Palermo
Phone: +39 091 7078008; +39 091 7078264; +39 091 7078133; +39 091 7078145
Email: filmcommission@regione.sicilia.it
