Castello Incantato
Garden museum in Sciacca with thousands of heads carved into stone and olive trees by the self-taught artist Filippo Bentivegna.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The Castello Incantato (Enchanted Castle) is not a real castle, but the lifelong work of Filippo Bentivegna (1888–1967), known as “Filippu di li testi” (Filippo of the heads). After a failed attempt to emigrate to the United States in 1913, he returned to Sciacca in 1919, bought a plot of land at the foot of Monte Kronio and began to carve faces and heads into the rock and into olive tree trunks, for more than fifty years.
The garden is crossed by paths with pebble mosaics and by decorated stone walls; the best known is the wall of heads. The artist's home is also decorated with wall paintings of fantastic cities. After Bentivegna's death the site was abandoned, and many works were lost or deteriorated.
Today the site, considered an example of art brut, is owned by the Sicilian Region and is run by the cooperative company Agorà. It lies about two kilometres from the centre of Sciacca.
Highlights
- Heads carved into rock and olive trees
- Wall of the heads
- Paths with pebble mosaics
- Artist's house with wall paintings
Permanent exhibition
- Giardino di sculture di Filippo Bentivegna – Thousands of heads and faces carved into stone and olive trees, with the artist's house decorated with wall paintings.
- Operated by
- Regione Siciliana (gestione: Società Cooperativa Agorà)
Admission & discounts
Paid entrance ticket; the amount is not stated by an official source.
Accessibility
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Kids & families
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Getting there & parking
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Amenities & dining
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Events & venue rental
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