Traveling exhibition “Paolo Orsi – from Akragas to Zancle”

Archaeology, understood as the study of the material and immaterial traces of the past, is a fundamental tool for understanding the present. Through dialogue with other disciplines, it allows us to grasp permanences, similarities, and invisible threads that connect today’s gestures and places to those of civilizations that preceded us. It is within this horizon that the event, inspired by the figure of Paolo Orsi, one of the fathers of Italian archaeology, takes place.
Paolo Orsi (1859–1935), originally from Trentino and director of the Archaeological Museum of Syracuse, conducted fundamental excavations throughout Sicily, contributing significantly to the knowledge of the island’s archaeological heritage. In 1916, he also worked in Assoro, leaving valuable records in his notebooks on the Church of San Leone, the Monastery of Santa Maria degli Angeli, the Castle, and the Piano della Corte district, home to the famous Hellenistic bronze situla decorated with the mask of Silenus.
The eight-day event in Assoro retraces his extraordinary contribution through study meetings, guided tours of the sites, performances, tastings, and workshops, involving public institutions, associations, archaeologists, professionals, and artists. The event thus becomes an opportunity to enhance the cultural and landscape heritage, restoring the area’s awareness of its own history.
On September 6th, a study day dedicated to “Assoro and its Territory” was held, moderated by architect Mariano Genovese, which offered an opportunity to discuss the relationship between archaeological heritage, landscape, and the local community. The day concluded with a dance performance inspired by the ancient world by choreographer Soad Ibrahim, in a suggestive dialogue between archaeological memory and contemporary languages.
An event that connects past and present, research and creativity, strengthening the bond between territory and community through culture.