Castello Scammacca, better known as Castello Pennisi di Floristella, stands in piazza Agostino Pennisi, on the outskirts of Acireale. It is not a medieval castle but a late nineteenth-century villa dressed up as a castle: it was built as a country residence for Baron Agostino Pennisi di Floristella, to a design by the Palermo architect Giuseppe Patricolo. The name comes from the Scammacca barons, the former owners of the vineyard on which it still stands.
What to see
The building is adorned with Guelph crenellations and pointed arches in neo-Gothic style, following the Sicilian eclectic taste of the time. Inside are terraces with views of Etna and an elegant chapel in the last wing, completed at the end of 1893 but still without frescoes: these were painted by Giuseppe Sciuti in the early twentieth century, with eight saints chosen according to the names of family members.
In front of the castle stretches a large garden, less tended today than in the past, when it was full of trees and flowers. Baron Agostino Pennisi Statella thought of making it a cultural centre for exhibitions and events, partly to show off his coin collection, now kept in Syracuse.
Visiting
The castle is private property: whether it can be visited should be checked beforehand.
Our editors' tip
If it looks familiar, that is likely: some scenes of The Godfather Part III, Un bellissimo novembre and Malizia were filmed at the castle.
