Palazzo dell'Arpa
Palazzo dell'Arpa or Oddo
We are at the historic palace that houses the Town Hall of Sambuca di Sicilia. The noble family of the Baroni Oddo had it built with local stone in the 17th century—when Baroque was giving way to Neoclassicism—on the site of the urban gate leading to the Arab fortress city of Zabut, the original core of the town. At the end of the 19th century, the palace was rented to the local magistrates to serve as the municipal headquarters and was subsequently sold to the town administration in 1931 to accommodate some of the municipal offices. The interiors, restored in the late 1960s, now house the active Administration, the Municipal Council, and the administrative offices.
The Harp: one of Sambuca's symbols
As the seat of the Municipal Administration, Palazzo Oddo is also known as Palazzo “dell’Arpa” (the Harp Palace). The harp has become one of the symbols of the Municipality of Sambuca and its heraldic emblem. The harp appears on the municipal flag alongside the Latin inscription "volat ad aethera virtus," the motto of the Beccadelli family of Bologna, which translates to "virtue soars to the heavens." This refers to a line from Virgil's Aeneid, meaning that virtue elevates one to the highest things, distancing oneself from the pettiness of earthly matters. The harp is also the subject of the imposing installation crafted from a steel alloy by Enzo De Luca, a skilled local artisan, located at the entrance of the village.
An "urbanistic" architecture, bridging eras in the village
The facade of the building, with its two tall arches closing off the straight stretch of Via Grande (now Corso Umberto I), seems to be embedded in the external walls that once enclosed the ancient city: an original architectural and urbanistic solution that makes the building a sort of "bridge" between the Arab Quarter and the modern Sambuca. The rectangular front is simple but orderly, divided into sections by sandstone pilasters and topped with a projecting cornice and a high attic wall with oval motifs. On the lower level, there are two full arches with a sumptuous portal between them. The double triumphal arch is crowned by three elegant balconies on the upper level, featuring intricate neoclassical decorations.
From the plaque for the Duce to the clock, gift of the emigrant musician
Just above the palace's portal, in 1938, a plaque was placed by local Fascists under Benito Mussolini's orders. This plaque was mounted in response to the anti-Fascist sanctions imposed on Italy by the League of Nations in 1935 for its invasion of Ethiopia. It featured grandiose phrases extolling Mussolini's autarchic policies and his glories. Today, in its place, there is a clock, a gift from Francesco Riggio, a distinguished conductor from Sambuca who emigrated to America at a young age. Since 2016, the year Sambuca was elected as one of the "Borgo dei Borghi" (Most Beautiful Villages), a plaque on the facade commemorates this prestigious recognition, while the flag of the Association of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy flutters in front of the palace.
A treasure chest of contemporary art
Just above the palace's portal, in 1938, a plaque was placed by local Fascists under Benito Mussolini's orders. This plaque was mounted in response to the anti-Fascist sanctions imposed on Italy by the League of Nations in 1935 for its invasion of Ethiopia. It featured grandiose phrases extolling Mussolini's autarchic policies and his glories. Today, in its place, there is a clock, a gift from Francesco Riggio, a distinguished conductor from Sambuca who emigrated to America at a young age. Since 2016, the year Sambuca was elected as one of the "Borgo dei Borghi" (Most Beautiful Villages), a plaque on the facade commemorates this prestigious recognition, while the flag of the Association of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy flutters in front of the palace.