The birthplace of Salvatore Quasimodo is in Modica, on via Posterla, behind the cathedral of San Pietro. Here the poet, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, was born on 20 August 1901; today the house is a museum.
What to see
Quasimodo lived in this house with his family until the end of September 1902: after the disastrous flood that struck Modica on 26 September, his mother, his brother and the little Salvatore moved to Roccalumera, the family's home village. The Nobel Prize was awarded to him on 10 December 1959.
The house keeps period furniture and fittings: a wrought-iron bed, a prie-dieu, a bedside devotional picture. Then there are the poet's Olivetti typewriter, a writing desk, a record collection and a bookcase with volumes from one of his Milan studies, bought by the Sicilian Region in 1996. During the visit you can listen to original recordings of Quasimodo's voice, including some of his poems and the speech «The Poet and the Politician», read in Stockholm when he received the Nobel.
Visiting
The house-museum is on via Posterla, in the part of the town behind the cathedral of San Pietro. The sources consulted give no hours or tickets: check them before visiting.
Our editors' tip
Every year, around 20 August, the anniversary of the poet's birth, Modica hosts the Settimana Quasimodiana, with performances, talks and public readings, held since 1996. It is supported by the Salvatore Quasimodo Literary Park, which also has seats in Roccalumera and in Messina, the city where the poet spent his years of education and study.
