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Mar e sab (Tue and Sat) h 9.00am /7.00pm (ultimo ingresso/last entry 6.30pm)
Lun, mer, gio, ven (Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri) h 9.00 am /1.30 pm ( ultimo ingresso/last entry 1.00pm) dom. e festivi su prenotazione (Sun & Holidays on
reservation)
The convent of the Magione was founded by Matteo d’Ajello, chancellor of Tancredi, the last king of the Normans, in 1193, on the edge of what was then the citadel of the Kalsa (Al Halisah – the chosen one). The term Magione derives from the Latin Mansio – mansion, as it was the seat of the preceptor of the Teutonic Order.
During the Rectory of the Teutonic Order, the Vice-Chancellor of the Order and the Archbishop of Palermo Simone da Bologna expanded the architectural complex and created new chapels inside the church. In 1492 the complex passed into the hands of the commendatory Abbots –in commendam- and the architectural ensemble was distorted. The baroque taste and then again the neoclassical taste changed later the appearance of the convent and the church.
In 1920 the restoration by Francesco Valenti brought the original appearance back to life.
Other restorations followed, the first after the war and the bombings of 1943, and then in the nineties of the twentieth century.
Today the building depends on the Superintendence BB.CC.AA.Palermo. Tel. 091 7071425 – 091 6162231 – 091 6164 258
TIMETABLE
Tue and Sat h 9.00am /7.00pm last entry 6.30pm
Lun, mer, gio, ven Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri h 9.00 am /1.30 pm last entry 1.00pm
Sun & Holidays on reservation