Menfi
Between the rivers Belice and Carboj, the village of Menfi is a treasure chest rich in landscape beauties, such as the beach of Porto Palo and the Natural Reserve of the Mouth of the Belice river, as well as cultural and historical ones, located on the south-western coast of Sicily. According to scholars, the ancient Sican city of Inico was founded in the fourth century BC, in a position slightly further north than the current town of Menfi. The reasons that led the Sicani to settle in this territory are linked to the fertile soil that still characterizes these places, mainly used for vines, from which excellent wine is produced – white cultivar Menfi DOC, and to the cultivation of the Spined Artichoke of Menfi, a local specialty. According to other schools of thought, the settlement today occupied by Porto Palo di Menfi developed before Inico, and, thanks to its port, traded with the Phoenician-Punic civilization. After Sicani, the ancient Inico was populated by the Greeks first, and by the Romans later.
12009
INHABITANTS
ITALY
PLACE
113,6
km²
Menfi
Menfi welcomes its visitors with a Sun-shaped door, a symbol of the fertility of the surrounding area and its extraordinary nature. The historic center is characterized by the elegant Viale della Vittoria and the connection with Piazza Vittorio Emanuele III, a terrace overlooking the sea housing Palazzo Pignatelli, an exhibition and cultural center and home to one of the Interpretation Centers of the Phoenicians’ Route; the reinterpretation of the 1238 Tower of Frederick II of the Swabian Castle, collapsed during the 1968 earthquake. Palazzo Planeta is also located in the city center, built in the second half of the eighteenth century by the Bivona family of landowners, now home to the Winehouse of Strada del Vino Terre Sicane Association and to cultural activities dedicated to the promotion of wine and other typical products.
For over twenty years the sea and the coasts of Menfi have been awarded the Blue Flag of the FEE (Foundation for Environmental Education in Europe) and the Green Flag, recognition of a beach suitable for children chosen by pediatricians.
Along the Menfi coast was found the Punic-Roman wreck, now exhibited in Palazzo Pignatelli.
Events:
It is worth attending the annual “Inycon” food and wine festival with various initiatives and activities.
Website: https://welcometomenfi.it
