Palma di Montechiaro is a hill town on Sicily’s southern coastal belt, in the province of Agrigento, set above a landscape of sea views, cliffs and inland heights. Founded in 1637 by Carlo and Giulio De Caro e Tomasi, it was laid out on an orthogonal plan that still gives its historic centre a clear, ordered character.
Known simply as Palma until 1865, the town carries a distinctive mix of aristocratic, religious and literary identity. Its links with the Tomasi family, Princes of Lampedusa, connect it to Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa and the world of *The Leopard*, while its strong Catholic and monastic memory helped earn it the nickname “Jerusalem of Sicily”.
Beyond its 17th-century foundation, the surrounding territory preserves traces of much older settlement, from prehistoric phases to the Greek age. This combination of planned Baroque town, noble lineage, religious symbolism and coastal hill setting is what gives Palma di Montechiaro its particular place in the Agrigento area.
Patron Saint:
Our Lady of the Rosary (Maria SS. Del Rosario) – 8 September
Nearest Airport:
Comiso (Pio La Torre) – (91 km, 01:26)
Neighboring Cities:
