Bivona


Bivona is an Italian comune with 3,027 inhabitants in the Free Municipal Consortium of Agrigento in Sicily.
Nestled amidst the Sicani Mountains, where it once served, alongside neighboring Palazzo Adriano, as the official seat of the regional park, Bivona is renowned for cultivating the Bivona Peach, which earned the PGI designation in 2014, and for crafting a distinctive artisanal chair.
Likely originating as a settlement during the Islamic period, Bivona is first documented in the Norman era. It hosted a Jewish community, traces of which remain in the sparse remnants of a synagogue and in local folklore. Between the 15th and 16th centuries, it was a prominent feudal center in the Vallo di Mazara. In 1554, Charles V elevated it to a duchy, the first in the Kingdom of Sicily, while also granting it the title of city. The town was home to numerous religious orders and institutions, including the Jesuit college endorsed by Ignatius of Loyola, as evidenced by the many sacred buildings concentrated in its medieval historic center. Bivona is also noted for one of the earliest documented cults of Saint Rosalia.

Geography

Territory

Bivona lies in the inland region of the Province of Agrigento, bordering the Metropolitan City of Palermo.
The territory of Bivona spans approximately and is partially included in the "Oriented Nature Reserve of Palazzo Adriano Mountains and Sosio Valley" and the "Sicani Mountains Park".
Its elevation ranges from above sea level in the southern area, bordering Ribera and Cianciana, to at the summit of Monte delle Rose, north of the town, near Palazzo Adriano in the Metropolitan City of Palermo. The elevation of the inhabited area varies from in the southern districts to approximately 600 meters in the northern ones, typically cited as, referencing the former town hall.
  • Seismic classification: Zone 2, PCM Ordinance No. 3274 of 20 March 2003.

    Topography

The territory is situated at the foothills of the Monti Sicani, which encircle the town, forming a natural amphitheater. It encompasses the mid-valley section of the Magazzolo River basin. Approximately three-quarters of its area consists of foothill and hilly zones, with the remaining quarter being distinctly mountainous.
The mountainous landscape comprises limestone-dolomite formations from the Mesozoic era, primarily in the northern part of the territory.
The main peaks in Bivona's territory include:
  • Monte delle Rose ;
  • Monte Pernice ;
  • Pizzo San Filippo ;
  • Monte Scuro ;
  • Pizzo Mondello ;
  • Pizzo Catera ;
  • Pizzo Scavarrante ;
  • Pizzo di Naso.
The rocky outcrops of Pizzo Mondello, composed of layered limestone and flint with fossil shell traces, are steeply inclined, reflecting the tectonic deformations experienced by the Sicani Mountains.

Hydrography

Bivona's territory forms part of the drainage basin of the Magazzolo River, bordered by Pizzo Mondello, Pizzo Scavarrante, Serra Mezzo Canale, and Cozzo Timpe Rosse. In addition to the main river, it includes tributaries such as Lordo, Calabrò, Acque Bianche, Salito, and Gebbia. The right-bank tributaries of the Magazzolo follow a tortuous course, exhibiting significant regressive erosion, providing substantial water flow during the rainy season but drying up in summer. Numerous springs feed three main natural channels, tributaries of the Magazzolo: the first, collecting water from the Santa Rosalia and Capo d’Acqua springs, is the Alba River, whose urban section has been underground since the mid-19th century; the second channels water from the Santissimo and Acque Bianche springs; and the third gathers water from the Grotticelle, Canfuto, and San Filippo springs.
A few kilometers from the town center lies the Castello Dam, creating an artificial lake with a capacity of approximately. Its waters irrigate Bivona's peach orchards and the orange groves of Ribera.

Flora and fauna

The flora and fauna of Bivona's territory are characteristic of the mountainous and foothill zones of the Mediterranean region. In less anthropized areas, forests consist of holly oak, downy oak, and strawberry trees, with reforestation primarily involving Aleppo pine, cypress, black pine, and Cephalonian fir. A rich understory has been observed to include species such as spurge, hawthorn, and osyris.
In the 1930s, during a visit by Benito Mussolini, plane trees were planted along Via Lorenzo Panepinto, black locust trees in Piazza XXVIII Ottobre, and the municipal park was landscaped.
The fauna primarily includes small insectivorous birds such as blue tits, great tits, chaffinches, blackcaps, robins, and wrens, alongside blackbirds, wood pigeons, and jays.

Climate

As with the rest of the Sicani mountain range, the climate is classified as temperate and of the Mediterranean xerothermic type, with long summers and mild winters. Morphology and differences in altitude determine relative variability between different locations within the municipal area.

Climate

  • Climatic classification: Zone C, 1268 DD.

    Etymology

The origin of the name Bivona is uncertain. It first appears in a document from 1171, though the form Bibona was more common until the early 16th century.
The variant Bisbona is recorded in 1363 and was considered a scholarly form in the 16th century, derived from bis bona. A 1557 text states: "This town is called Bivona, almost Bi-bona, that is, bis-bona, for the purity of its air, being situated on high cliffs, and for the abundance of healthful waters and fruitful trees, of which it is exceedingly rich, a truly more than good and most pleasant place". This etymology was supported by Trovato.
More likely, it is related to the Calabrian Bivona or Vivona, stemming from a pre-Greek substrate word, later Hellenized as Ἱππώνιον and Latinized as Vibō, Vibōna.

History

Ancient era

Archaeological finds suggest human presence in Bivona's territory as early as the Copper Age. Hilltop sites in the area show continuous habitation from the Iron Age to the Middle Ages, with near-total abandonment during the Roman period, when large rural settlements formed in river valleys.
Due to misinterpretations of ancient sources, Bivona was once thought to have Greek origins, identified with Hipponium, founded by Gelon. Another unverified hypothesis linked it to the indigenous center of Hippana, later identified at Monte dei Cavalli, though both names may share a common Mediterranean substrate root.

Medieval era

Bivona is first documented in 1160, during the reigns of Roger II and his successors William I and William II. Initially a Muslim-inhabited hamlet, it quickly grew into a significant center in the Vallo di Mazara.
By the late 13th century, it became a lordship but was sacked in 1359 by royal troops under Francesco Ventimiglia. The Bivona Castle was then entrusted to Corrado Doria.
Bivona flourished under the Chiaramonte lordship and especially under the De Luna, key figures in the Cases of Sciacca.

Early modern era

In 1554, Charles V elevated the barony of Bivona to a duchy, both due to its status as one of the most populous feudal centers in Sicily and the most populous under the de Luna family, and because of the favorable relations between the emperor and the Viceroy of Sicily Juan de Vega, father-in-law of Pietro de Luna, the first duke of Bivona and the first Sicilian noble to receive the highest feudal title of the time.
Over the next two centuries, the duchy passed to the Montcada family, then to Spanish noble families who remained uninvolved in local affairs, leading to the town's decline.

Contemporary era

In 1812, the new Constitution abolished feudalism in the Kingdom of Sicily, fostering Bivona's economic revival. The town was designated the capital of the eponymous district, one of twenty-three divisions of the island, encompassing thirteen municipalities.
In the 20th century, Bivona developed as an administrative and cultural hub of inland Agrigento, hosting various health and administrative offices, as well as secondary schools.

Symbols

The current coat of arms of the City of Bivona was granted by a decree of the President of the Republic on 8 July 2021.
The gonfalon is a white cloth bordered in azure; the flag is a white cloth bordered in azure.
The coat of arms used until 2021 was described in the municipal statute as:
The crescent moon represents the noble family of the first dukes, the De Luna d'Aragona, while the crab may recall the ancient symbol of Akragas. The gonfalon of the municipality of Bivona reproduces the coat of arms on an azure background, enriched with floral decorations.
According to the Statute of the Municipality of Bivona, the municipality has its own anthem.

Honors

When Charles V elevated the barony to a duchy in 1554 during the Kingdom of Sicily, Bivona earned the right to assume the title of city.

Monuments and places of interest

Bivona boasts numerous religious buildings. Many 17th century noble palaces have been destroyed or incorporated into more modern structures.

Religious architecture

Churches

  • Chiaramontana Mother Church, in Gothic style, with only the portal of the main façade remaining, an example of Chiaramonte Gothic art in Sicily.
  • Church of San Bartolomeo, with only the Baroque-style portal of the main façade surviving.
  • Church of Santa Rosalia, featuring a Baroque portal, housing the frame of the saint's statue, a wooden crucifix, and several 17th–18th-century paintings; a small trapdoor provides access to the trunk of the oak tree under which the saint is believed to have prayed during her time in Bivona's woods.
  • Church of the Annunciation, also known as the Church of the Carmine, containing paintings by Giuseppe Salerno, known as the "Zoppo di Ganci".
  • Church of San Sebastiano, also called Santa Chiara, with a late Renaissance-Mannerist portal.
  • Church of San Paolo, with a 17th-century Baroque portal, featuring Baroque decorations, 18th-century statues, and paintings.
  • Church of Santa Maria di Loreto, also known as San Domenico, one of Bivona's largest churches, though degraded by the mid-20th century with furnishings lost or transferred to other Bivona churches.
  • Church of Santa Maria di Gesù, now in ruins and privately owned; originally Gothic, renovated in the 18th century.
  • Church of San Giacomo Maggiore, or Cappuccini, containing numerous funerary inscriptions and a large 16th-century painting of the Madonna degli Angeli on the main altar.
  • Mother Church Mater Salvatoris, built by the Jesuits and expanded in the 17th century, becoming the new mother church in 1781.
  • Church of Sant’Isidoro Agricola, erected by citizens after poor agricultural years in honor of Saint Isidore, protector of farmers, lacking decorative elements.
  • Sanctuary of the Madonna dell’Olio, an ancient extra-urban worship site dedicated to the Madonna di l’Ogliu. In 2008, it was included in the Sicilian Region's Regional Map of Places of Identity and Memory.
Additionally, destroyed churches include: the Church of Sant’Andrea ; the Church of Sant’Antonio Abate ; the Church of Sant’Agata, built during the Chiaramonte lordship ; the Church of San Giovanni Battista; the Church of Santa Maria Maddalena ; and the Church of San Pietro, later Santa Maria del Soccorso.
Finally, among destroyed religious buildings is the Church of the Immaculate Conception, built at the expense of Bivona's poet and physician Giuseppe Romano. It collapsed in the 20th century and was rebuilt as a meeting and conference venue. The original Baroque portal with twisted columns, relocated to the nearby Church of Santa Maria di Loreto, was buried under rubble after that church's roof collapsed. The main altar once housed a statue of the Immaculate Conception, now preserved in the Mother Church.