Gangi (Pa)

Beautifully situated in the south-west Madonie, Gangi features a perfectly preserved medieval town plan and remarkable churches and monuments. Don’t miss the XVIII century Mother church, sided by the Ventimiglia tower, now a bell tower, where works by Giuspeppe Salerno, including the Universal Judgement, probably his masterpiece, are; Palazzo Bongiorno, the Civic Museum, the church of San Nicolò and the Spirito Santo Sanctuary. Just outside of town, there is the former Convent of the Benedictins (XVI century), better known as Gangi Vecchio.

During the first two weeks in August, the famous Ear festival and the Burgisi festival take place: they are two ancient propitiatory rites dedicated to the goddess Ceres, the wheat mother. People celebrate the peasant world parading with decked-out horses and sheaves of ears. This event is marked by the fusion between Christian religion and pagan religiousness, and is loaded with symbols of the labour of man and the fruit of the land.
Websites: http://www.comune.gangi.pa.it