Where We Are
Contrada Triona-96018 Pachino-Marzamemi
© Casuzze I Mori Museum – Contrada Triona, Pachino / Marzamemi
Casuzze I Mori Museum
Tourist rental – Activity regulated by Legislative Decree 50/2017 and regional regulations of Sicily
CIN: IT089014C2P9MJM4KC / IT089014C2GIAADMLM · CIR: 19089014C210909 / 19089014C210904
CASUZZE I MORI:
From the name
to their position
"Casuzze I Mori Museum", the name refers to the way those small houses, the "casuzze", were commonly called, used as stables and barns of the farmhouse, with a reference to the Moors (Arabs) who dominated the territory until their exile in 1091 with the fall of nearby Noto, when, as legend has it, the widow of the emir, who had fallen in battle against the Normans, headed with her treasure towards Marzamemi. Here, before leaving for Egypt, she ordered her slaves to hide that treasure inside the Grotta di Calafarina, killing them immediately afterwards so they could not reveal the hiding place. From that day on, their souls became the guardians of that place.
Located in a geographically fortunate position, the "Casuzze I Mori Museum" opens up a range of roads leading to famous destinations, and others less known.
A few kilometers east lie Marzamemi and the aristocratic Noto.
At dawn on July 10, 1943, the small triangle of limestone between Cozze and Triona was transformed into a historical stage. Its strategic position, overlooking the blue mirror of the Ionian Sea, hosted a crucial meeting between the British and Canadian allied forces. After the landing at Capo Passero and Marza, soldiers of the First Infantry, the 51 Highland Division, and the Argylls gathered here, seeking shelter and coordination. The small Casuzze, once nothing more than a simple farmhouse, became the hub of an English command post, thanks to their privileged view of the surrounding territory. The atmosphere was charged with tension and determination, as men and materials, including machinery and ammunition that could not be carried by mules, accumulated in the triangle.
Skirting northeast, the provincial road, interrupted only by a sliver of sea, stretches towards Europe.
At the foot of the Casuzze, in the streets towards colorful vineyards, lies baroque Pachino.
To the southeast, the imposing Torre Xibini lights the way for the lost and, obligingly, bears witness to the union of the two seas (the Ionian and the Mediterranean).
From east to west, the warm beaches, shores, and marshes around the Casuzze draw a blue parenthesis at the southernmost tip.
Between Costa D’Ambra and Costa Sole, in the eastern sky, Phoebus-Apollo-Sun announces the dawn by kissing infinity and with his long fingers caresses the grains of sand of the Ionian, where legend has it the goddess Calypso lay to dry her curls.
Lying among caper flowers and the scent of muscat, in the sweet marine nights the Casuzze recount prehistory, poems, and legends: diligent, they protect catacombs and archaeological sites where the Sicani dwelled since the most ancient times.
"Casuzze I Mori Museum" serene, stretched out in the shade of the fig tree, listen to the whisper of the wind and the laments of shipwrecked sailors on the rocks lapped by brackish waves, where Ulysses left his footprints.
