La Cuba Soprana di Palermo. Il suo ninfeo belvedere arabo-normanno tra Antichità e Rinascimento

Abstract

The Cuba Soprana was part of the royal Parco during the 10th and 12th centuries and it is now enclosed in the late-baroque palace of Villa Napoli, located in the Western area of Palermo. Typologically, it is a fusion of two architectural models: the belvedere pavilion and the nymphaeum. The latter consists of an artificial fountain and a pond in which there are three large allochthonous dolomite rocks and a set of metallic spouts. These are all presided over by a monumental tripartite façade that at the same time was part of the pavilion, a typical construction of aulic gardens intended for recreation and contemplation of the landscape. From the 10th century to the Norman reform of the 12th century, three phases have been identified, in which the foundational Arab model was substantially respected. Considering the combination of the two mentioned functions, it is believed that there are no medieval buildings preserved with such features. However, there are Post-medieval, European and Eastern Islamic parallels that prove the existence of a common tradition dating back to Greco-Roman antiquity. It is possible that this type of architecture returned to Sicily from the East during the Kalbi emirate since classical models survived in Syria and Egypt until the 7th and 8th centuries.