The Ciminiere are a trade fair-museum complex created from the recovery of some parts of the buildings of industrial origin aimed at refining the sulfur extracted from the mines of the Sicilian hinterland. Today the chimneys host three important museums with finds and installations of great historical value: the Museum of the Allied landing in Sicily , the Cinema Museum and the Museum of Ancient Writing Instruments . The external structure and the garden are very well cared for, an excellent business card for the City. The caretakers, very kind and knowledgeable, make the visit even more pleasant.
L'ingresso del "Museo dello sbarco alleato in Sicilia" consente un primo approccio al momento storico.
The entrance to the " Museum of the Allied landing in Sicily " allows a first approach to the historical moment. In the cinema room the visitor can watch an introductory film on the Second World War and the events preceding the landing. Subsequently we enter the reconstruction of a typical Sicilian square. On the flagpole the Savoy tricolor, while on one wall there is a typical slogan of fascist propaganda.
Large rooms host weapons and equipment used by the various armies at war but also wax statues depicting statesmen and characters who played prominent roles during the conflict.
The museum also houses the reproduction of an air raid shelter which, through sensorround technology, allows the visitor to imagine the experience that citizens had lived during the bombings. Once out of the refuge you enter the reconstruction of the small square after the rain of bombs.
The Cinema Museum of Catania , created by the Swiss architect and set designer, traces the history of cinematography from its dawn and extends over 1,000 square metres. and was set up by the famous Swiss architect and set designer François Confino.
Inaugurated on 16 May 2003, it is part of the exhibition structures of the Museum Circuit of the Metropolitan City of Catania.
The museum bears witness to an important historical moment for Sicilian cinematographic culture which is the ideal stage for film production.
The Cinema Museum is visited every year by thousands of tourists and students and is also an ideal site for hosting and organizing events and film festivals.
The exhibition itinerary tells the history of Italian cinema through famous people and historical instruments. The images and videos of the filming of films by Visconti, Pasolini and Fellini are just some of the pieces of memory that the Cinema Museum offers to its visitors.
Inside, various settings evoke scenes from famous films. The "living room" brings to mind cult Italian films such as "Poverty and Nobility" (Mattioli 1954). Monitors positioned on the plates show themed film sequences. The reproduction of a "room" with original armchairs is also splendid.
The Museum of Ancient Writing Instruments , inaugurated in August 2022, by will of the well-known collector Salvo Panebianco. From the Amygdala to the ballpoint pen tells visitors the history of writing through the over 10,000 specimens, objects and kits that make up its private collection. The first instruments are exhibited in the Museum, from the Kälamos to the Stylus, to the very first English metal nibs, from first fountain pens from the 19th century up to the present day and the first typewriters. Each specimen, cataloged and accompanied by historical data, determines the encyclopedic value of his lifelong passion.
The Museum, from a scientific, artistic and documentary point of view, traces the history of the path taken by man in the difficult undertaking of the evolution of the Writing Instrument
In the exhibited specimens we find the rigorous canons of European Craftsmanship, the intelligence, wisdom and discipline that govern the social phenomenon of Art. A journey back in time that makes us rediscover distant, indeed very distant, ancestors and makes us discover the meaning and social role of those who wrote, in times when writing was only manual.
The headquarters of the "Museum of Ancient Writing Instruments" is located inside the Le Ciminiere di Catania exhibition center in Viale Africa and will be open from Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 to 20:00 (Closed all day on Monday).
For info: 360.321637 – 347.2986584
penblanc@yahoo.it
