Light on the Sulfur Mines: Exhibition, Book Presentation, and In-Depth Talk with Author Attilio Scimone

July 26, 2025 – Town Hall Courtyard, Assoro

On Saturday, July 26, 2025, the courtyard of the Assoro Town Hall hosted a new and powerful Geo-Event promoted by the Si.M.Geo – Ecomuseum System of the Rocca di Cerere UNESCO Global Geopark, in collaboration with the GAL Rocca di Cerere Geopark area.

The event centered around the presentation of the book “Il Paesaggio delle Solfare – Sicilia” (The Landscape of the Sulfur Mines – Sicily) by Attilio Scimone, who was present at the event. The presentation was accompanied by the opening of a photographic exhibition entirely dedicated to the evocative landscape of Sicily’s sulfur mines.

A Landscape Suspended Between Nature and Industrial Archaeology

The book gathers 212 black-and-white photographs taken between 1988 and 1992 in twenty sulfur mines across Sicily. With a clear and poetic gaze, the images capture the complexity of a landscape shaped by sulfur extraction—one that is also deeply infused with human stories, labor, sacrifice, and transformation.

The publication is enriched by historical, technical, and scientific essays, written by scholars who explore the area’s morphology, the social and economic history of the sulfur mines, and the symbolic value of these sites as cultural and identity-rich heritage.

A Dialogue Between Words and Images

During the evening, Professor Attilio Scimone led the audience through a thematic talk, focusing on three core themes:
• The role of industrial archaeology and photography as tools of collective memory, preserving and restoring dignity to a landscape often forgotten.
• The significance of the industrial landscape of Enna in fostering conscious tourism, rooted in historical memory and local identity.
• An overview of the main sulfur mines in the province of Enna, including Giumentaro, Floristella, Faccia Lavata, Zimbalio, and Vodi-Bambinello—symbolic sites of Sicily’s sulfur heritage.

An Invitation to See the Landscape with New Eyes
“Light on the Sulfur Mines” was more than just a book presentation—it was an invitation to reinterpret the landscape, to recognize the value of a mining legacy that still speaks today through the shapes of the land, the traces of industrial archaeology, and the lives of those who inhabited and transformed these places.

Through the art of photography and the author’s passionate storytelling, the audience had the opportunity to rediscover a crucial chapter in Sicilian history, sparking reflection on the deep ties between landscape, memory, and identity.