Palazzo Pollicarini: A Fifteenth-Century Noble Residence in Enna
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.4
- Popularity
- Very Low
- Country
- Italy
- Primary era
- Medieval
- Eras represented
- Medieval
- Civilizations
- Crown of Aragon, Kingdom of Sicily
- Site type
- Domestic
- Remains
- Castle
On this page6 sections
History
Palazzo Pollicarini is a fifteenth-century noble and fortified residence in Enna, Italy, built in the Sicilian Gothic style with Catalan Gothic influence. Its history is associated with the Falanga and Petroso families, whose ownership and patronage helped preserve the building’s decorative character over the centuries.
The Falanga and Petroso families
The Falanga were a noble family from Messina who established themselves in Castrogiovanni, the former name of Enna. Their connection with the Pollicarini fief included Giovan Tommaso Falanga, who held the barony of Scarpello and Pollicarini.
The Petroso, an ancient noble family of Enna, acquired the Pollicarini fief through the marriage of Massimiliano Petroso, son of Giacomo, to Maria Falanga, daughter of Melchiorre. After Maria Falanga’s death, their son Giovanni Tommaso received the associated titles as firstborn on 26 January 1622.
Nineteenth-century ownership
From the nineteenth century, Palazzo Pollicarini belonged to the Patelmo family. They restored the facade of the piano nobile, the principal ceremonial floor of an Italian aristocratic residence, where the palace’s reception rooms are located. The building is currently neglected.
Remains
Exterior and courtyard
Palazzo Pollicarini stands on Via Roma opposite Piazza Colajanni. Its fortified residential character is expressed through a monumental entrance portal, which is topped by an elegant frame and opens into the courtyard. Within the courtyard, a portico with pointed arches, a Gothic form in which the two curves meet at an apex, is crowned by a radial decorative element.
The two-storey building is crowned by a cornice formed from small arches and moulded Aragonese frames. These details reflect Catalan Gothic, a regional Gothic tradition associated with the Crown of Aragon and known for strong, relatively austere structural forms.
Principal interior spaces
A large monumental staircase rises from the courtyard to the piano nobile and its reception rooms, including the Sala Magna. The principal floor is lit by three rectangular windows, each surmounted by a pierced frame decorated with arabesques. Servants’ quarters occupied the attic level, completing the building’s division between ceremonial rooms and domestic service spaces.
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