Walking in Palermo, it is so easy to visit and to discover different parts of the beautiful city. If you are planning
to spend time in Palermo and you like visiting and seeing beautiful sites, the Martorana church is one you can’t miss.
The church known as Martorana is located in Piazza Bellini, 3 Palermo. Its building was completed in 1143 and built by Giorgio Antiocheno, a big admiral under King Ruggero II, King of Sicily.
In 1221 the church was given to the Greek clergy. In 1436 the king Alfonso d’Aragona gave to the Benedictine nuns that lived in the nearest monastery of Martorana.
Over the years some changes happen in the church, such as the original face was destroyed along with the original mosaics inside. Now the inner part of the church has a mix of ancient elements and baroque elements. The floor is original, although heavily restored.
There still beautiful mosaics in the church and they represent the following scenes:
1. Christ enthroned surrounded by 4 archangels (in the dome that have to the base one Arabic
sentence on wooden boards); prophets and king (in the drum)
2. Annunciation and presentation to the temple (in the arcades)
3. Saint Giuseppe
4. Apostles
5. Nativity
6. The Virgin Maria
7. Giorgio Antiocheno on the feet of the Virgin;
8. Christ crowning King Ruggero
The Benedictine Monastery of the Matorana Church was built in 1194 by Goffredo and Eloisa Martorana, near the two churches: Ammiraglio and S. Cataldo.
The church, the monastery, and a convent took the name “complex martorana” to honor and remember the sweet desserts baked by the nuns. The monastery was transformed into a university place but then was destroyed.
In one room was a nice wooden roof painting of XVII century. In a small garden there was a baroque fountain that used columns probably taken from the nearest Norman buildings.
The name of the church is connected to the sweet desserts typical in Palermo: “a martorana” or “marzapane.” The tradition tells us that the garden of the monastery was rich, one of the nicest gardens and land in all
city where fruit trees grew and vegetables too, cared for by the nuns.
Matorana is a Sicilian marzipan dessert. Matorana is almond paste sweets made to look like fresh fruit.
One day, the bishop, curious to visit it during the autumn period, decided to go to the monastery and to
take a look. The garden did not have any fruits because of the season. The nuns decorated the trees with
marzipan sweets made with almonds flour, and the typical Sicilian dessert Matorana was born!
The recipe goes back to XIII – XIV century and it has Arabic origins. Originally, the “marzipan” was a wooden box with a plug and it was used for different things, as to save important documents (from this: “open the marzapani and reveal secrets). Frequently this box was used to send sweets made with flour and almonds.
Let’s take a walk in the historical city center of Palermo, find a pastry and taste the sweet martorana fruit.
Enjoy the taste.