Zisa (Palermo)
Zisa is a neighborhood in the 5th municipality of Palermo . The name is derived from the Norman royal palace La Zisa .
description
The Zisa neighborhood is in the center of Palermo. The neighboring districts are Noce in the north, Politeama in the east, Cuba-Calatafimi and Palazzo Reale-Monte di Pietà in the south and Altarello in the west . The district is bordered to the north by Via Perpignano , Piazza Principe di Camporeale and Via Dante Algheri to Via Salvatore Spataro to the east. The eastern boundary runs from Via Salvatore Spataro via Passenger PL 1 , Cortile Barcellona , Vicolo Bernava and Via S.Lo.Forte to Corso Camillo Finocchiaro Aprile and on via Corso A. Amedeo to Via Gaetano Mosca . In the south, the border of the district runs from east to west over Via Gaetano Mosca to Via Colonna Rotta , then via Antonino Via della Rovere to Via Danisinni and along this route to Piazza Daisinni , then form Via Siccheria Quattro Camere , Via Libero Grassi , Via Portello the southern end. To the west, the border runs along Viale della Regione Siciliana Nord Ovest .
The area of today's district was part of the Royal Genoardo Park during the Norman era . This former hunting area, located outside the historic city walls of Palermo, was for a long time sparsely populated with a few houses and a few flour mills on the Gabriele River shaped the area. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the population in this area grew rapidly and Zisa developed into a densely populated district of Palermo.
One of the most culturally important places in the district is the medieval palace La Zisa , which is now Palermo's Museum of Islamic Art . Since 2005 there has been an Arab-style garden in front of the palace with numerous fountains. Not far from there is Villino Florio , built between 1899 and 1902 . It was designed by Ernesto Basile as an Art Nouveau villa and is now used as a museum for home decor from the Belle Époque . In addition, a modern cultural center has been created in a former industrial area with the Cantieri Culturali alla Zisa , in which, for example, the local Goethe Institute , the Institut français , the film school Scuola nazionale di cinema as well as theaters, cinemas and exhibition rooms are located.