Castelvetrano ( scn, Castiḍḍuvitranu) is a town and ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' in the

province of Trapani Trapani ( it, Provincia di Trapani, scn, Pruvincia di Tràpani; officially ''Libero consorzio comunale di Trapani'') is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily, southern Italy. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it ...

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

, southern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. The archeological site of

Selinunte Selinunte (; grc, Σελῑνοῦς, Selīnoûs ; la, Selīnūs , ; scn, Silinunti ) was a rich and extensive ancient Greek city on the south-western coast of Sicily in Italy. It was situated between the valleys of the Cottone and Modion ...

is located within the municipal territory. The municipality borders with

Campobello di Mazara Campobello di Mazara ( scn, Campubbeddu) is a town in the province of Trapani, Sicily, southern Italy. Its inhabitants are scattered in the town center and the minor seaside ''frazioni'' of Tre Fontane and Torretta Granitola, populated mostly ...

Mazara del Vallo Mazara del Vallo (; ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Trapani, southwestern Sicily, Italy. It lies mainly on the left bank at the mouth of the Mazaro river. It is an agricultural and fishing centre and its port gives shelter to the ...

, Menfi,

Montevago Montevago ( Sicilian: ''Muntivau'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about southwest of Palermo and about northwest of Agrigento. Montevago borders the following municipalities: ...

Partanna Partanna is a town and ''comune'' in province of Trapani, south-western Sicily, southern Italy. It is south-east of Trapani Trapani ( , ; scn, Tràpani ; lat, Drepanum; grc, Δρέπανον) is a city and municipality (''comune'') on t ...

Salemi Salemi is a town and ''comune'' in southwestern Sicily, Italy, administratively part of the province of Trapani. History Salemi is where Giuseppe Garibaldi announced the annexation of Sicily on May 14, 1860, as part of the Expedition of the T ...

and

Santa Ninfa Santa Ninfa is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Trapani, Sicily, southern Italy. History Santa Ninfa was founded in 1605 by Luigi Arias Giardina who, with approval of King Philip III of Spain Philip III ( es, Felipe III; 14 April 1 ...

History

The first recorded mentions of Castelvetrano in the historical record date back to the 12th and 13th centuries. By the 15th century, records exist of a federation of local cities which includes Castelvetrano. The church of St. John, outside the city walls, dates back to this period and was founded in 1412.

Economy

The economy is based predominantly on farming, with the cultivation of vines and olive trees being the main focus. Woodworking (mainly furniture) is also an important sector. Both Valle del Belìce olive oil and

Nocellara del Belice Nocellara del Belice is an olive cultivar from the Valle del Belice area of south-western Sicily. It is a dual-purpose olive, grown both for oil and for the table. It is used to make "Valle del Belìce" extra-virgin olive oil, which is presse ...

DOP table olives have a protected status in the European Union.

Main sights

The center of Castelvetrano consists of three linked squares and many monuments can be found within these areas. The main square is Piazza Tagliavia, which is adorned with many fine buildings including the town's principal church, the '' Chiesa Madre'', which in its present form dates back to the sixteenth century. Inside the church are stuccoes by Ferraro and

Giacomo Serpotta Giacomo Serpotta (10 March 1656 – 27 February 1732) was an Italian sculptor, active in a Rococo style and mainly working in stucco. Biography Serpotta was born and died in Palermo; and may have never left Sicily. His skill and facility with st ...

. Near the church is the ''Municipio'' (town hall) and also close by is the Purgatory Church, built in 1624–64, with its façade filled with statues and the church of Chiesa di San Domenico built in 1470, inside the church is the marble sepulcher of the prince

Carlo d'Aragona Tagliavia Carlo d'Aragona Tagliavia (Castelvetrano, Sicily, 1530 – Madrid, 25 September 1599) was a Sicilian-Spanish nobleman and viceroy. He was the son of a Sicilian peer, Giovanni Tagliavia, count of Castelvetrano, and a Spanish mother, Beatriz de Ara ...

. In the municipality of Castelvetrano, between the hamlets of Triscina and Marinella di Selinunte, is the archaeological park of

, an ancient Greek city.

Notable people

Philosopher

Giovanni Gentile Giovanni Gentile (; 30 May 1875 – 15 April 1944) was an Italian neo-Hegelian idealist philosopher, educator, and fascist politician. The self-styled "philosopher of Fascism", he was influential in providing an intellectual foundation for I ...

was born in Castelvetrano, and a local school is named after him.

Alfonso Caruana Alfonso Caruana (; born January 1, 1946) is an Italian-Canadian crime boss and member of the Sicilian Mafia and was the head of the Sicilian Cuntrera-Caruana Mafia clan's branch in Canada. In 1997, he was sentenced ''in absentia'' in Italy, on ...

, a notorious

Italian Canadian Italian Canadians ( it, italo-canadesi, french: italo-canadiens) comprise Canadians who have full or partial Italian heritage and Italians who migrated from Italy or reside in Canada. According to the 2021 Census of Canada, 1,546,390 Canadians ...

mafia boss A crime boss, also known as a crime lord, Don, gang lord, gang boss, mob boss, kingpin, godfather, crime mentor or criminal mastermind, is a person in charge of a criminal organization. Description A crime boss typically has absolute or nearl ...

and the head of the Canadian branch of

Cuntrera-Caruana Mafia clan The Cuntrera-Caruana Mafia clan () was a Mafia clan of the Cosa Nostra and held a key position in the illicit drug trade and money laundering for Cosa Nostra in the 1980s and 1990s. The Italian press baptized the clan as "The Rothschilds of the ...

was born in Castelvetrano. Castelvetrano is also the birthplace of infamous fugitive and

Sicilian Mafia The Sicilian Mafia, also simply known as the Mafia and frequently referred to as Cosa nostra (, ; "our thing") by its members, is an Italian Mafia-terrorist-type organized crime syndicate and criminal society originating in the region of Sicily a ...

boss

Matteo Messina Denaro Matteo Messina Denaro (; born 26 April 1962), also known as ''Diabolik'', is a Sicilian Mafia boss. He got his nickname from the Italian comic book character of the same name. He is considered to be one of the new leaders of Cosa Nostra after t ...

References

External links