Explorer Nicolosi

Giardino Bellini, also called Villa Bellini, is the oldest public park in Catania. The city bought the Prince of Biscari's garden maze in 1854, turned it into a public garden from 1864 and opened it in 1883. Its terraced lawns, palm trees, stairways and bandstand are dedicated to the composer Vincenzo Bellini, whose marble bust stands here.

The Elephant Fountain stands in the middle of Piazza del Duomo in Catania. Designed by Giovanni Battista Vaccarini in 1735-1737 as part of the rebuilding after the 1693 earthquake, it sets a black basalt elephant, known locally as u Liotru, on a marble base with figures of the rivers Simeto and Amenano, with an obelisk on its back.

Piazza del Duomo is the main square of Catania, where Via Etnea, Via Garibaldi and Via Vittorio Emanuele II meet. The cathedral of Saint Agatha stands on its east side and the town hall in Palazzo degli Elefanti on the north, with the Elephant Fountain in the middle; across the square are the Amenano fountain and the Porta Uzeda.

Catania Cathedral is dedicated to Saint Agatha, the city's patron saint. First built in 1078-1093 by Roger I of Sicily over the Roman Achillean Baths, it was rebuilt in Baroque style after the 1693 earthquake, with a façade by Giovanni Battista Vaccarini; the Norman apses and parts of the transept survive. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Catania.