Porta Nuova

The story

Porta Nuova stands at the upper end of the Cassaro, next to the Palazzo dei Normanni. It was raised to mark Charles V’s passage through Palermo on his return from the Tunis campaign of 1535, and rebuilt in its present form in 1583.

A fire badly damaged it late in the 17th century; the rebuilding gave it the pyramid roof clad in majolica that you see today.

The four telamons on the city-facing front represent defeated Moors: the most photographed and the most argued-over part of the monument.

Why it is worth it

From here the Cassaro runs straight to the sea: stand under the arch and the street, the palaces and the light of the harbour line up in front of you. Look up at the telamons, at the severed arms and the grimace: it is 16th-century propaganda left out in the street, with no label attached.