The Porta Spagnola of Augusta is a seventeenth-century monument, the most visible reminder of three centuries of Spanish rule in Sicily. Its construction began in 1681, to a design by the engineer Carlos de Grunembergh, by order of the viceroy Francesco Benavides, count of Santo Stefano: the cost fell on the people of Augusta. It was the main entrance to the town, reached by two drawbridges, installed after the cutting of the isthmus, which was done for reasons of military security and to prevent attacks from the north.
What to see
The gate has been altered several times over the centuries, and only its upper part survives intact. At the top are two rampant griffins holding a cornice, surmounted by the crown of Charles II of Spain.
In the panel bounded by the Golden Fleece the coat of arms of the viceroy Benavides is carved. On the gate a Latin inscription says that the viceroy, in fortifying the shore of so great a harbour, judged that he was providing for the safety not only of Sicily but of all Italy and of the Christian name.
Visiting
It is an open-air monument, seen from the street.
Our editors' tip
Read the date at the end of the inscription, written in Roman numerals in an unusual way: MDCXXCI, that is 1681, the year the work began, in the reign of Charles II.
