The church of San Giovanni Battista, also called the church of San Giovanni al Boeo, is a church in Marsala that belongs to the diocese of Mazara del Vallo, within the archaeological area of Capo Boeo.
What to see
The church was built in 1555 by the Jesuits on Capo Boeo, near the coast, in a fairly simple architectural style. It was not the first built on the spot: as illustrious travellers and scholars report, it formed part, together with the church of Santa Maria della Grotta, of the ancient abbey of the Basilian Fathers. Beneath the church lies the so-called «Grotto of the Sibyl», which tradition links to the dwelling, or tomb, of a sibyl: besides the better-known Cumaean one, a Sicilian or Lilybaean Sibyl has also been spoken of. Over the centuries the grotto became an integral part of the church, with which it communicates. It consists of a circular central room, connected with two rooms, one to the north and one to the west: the central room, cut in the rock, is covered by a low masonry dome with a skylight linked to the church floor, and at its centre has a square, not very deep pool, fed by a spring that rises in the northern room, where according to tradition the first Christians performed baptism. In front of the cavity stands a large stone altar with a marble image of Saint John the Baptist in very high relief, datable to the fifteenth century.
Saint John the Baptist has been since 1788 co-patron of the city of Marsala, of which he was once the patron. On 24 June, the saint's Nativity, the church opens to the public all day and Masses are celebrated every hour; the last, in the afternoon, is followed by the procession and the festivities end with a fireworks display, with street shows and markets in the evening.
Visiting
The church is a rectory of the parish of San Tommaso di Canterbury, the Mother Church of Marsala. According to the sources consulted it stays closed during the year and opens on 24 June, as well as for weddings and baptisms; the church and the grotto are said to be visitable free of charge, but the sources contradict each other on when: days and arrangements should be checked.
Our editors' tip
In the grotto look for the couch that seems dug by hand into the rock: legend says the Sibyl rested there, and that Ulysses came here to drink because of the nearby spring and sea; another, more remote, tells that the Sibyl was a bride who fell into the well and remained imprisoned beneath the church.
