The marble statue of Diana the huntress that embellished one of the avenues of the Royal Parco della Favorita in Palermo, established as a hunting reserve by the Bourbon sovereigns in 1799, finds a home inside the Antonino Salinas Regional Archaeological Museum, where it will be restored and preserved.
The work was presented to the public this morning at the Salinas headquarters. Present were the regional councilor for cultural heritage, Francesco Paolo Scarpinato, the director of the museum Caterina Greco, the military commander of the army in Sicily, general of division Maurizio Scardino, and the captain of the vessel Tiziano Garrapa, representing the maritime commander Rear Admiral Sicily Andrea Cottini.
The work, following a report from the Municipality of Palermo, was identified in 2003 by the Cultural Heritage Protection Command of the Palermo Carabinieri within the area of the former fuel depots of the Navy. Since then it was noted that it was necessary to transfer it to the Salinas Museum to preserve its conservation and guarantee its protection.
However, only since the end of 2022 has a profitable synergy been activated between Salinas, the Sicily maritime command, the Superintendence of Cultural and Environmental Heritage of Palermo, the Sicily army command and the Rangers of Italy association (managing body of the natural reserve oriented of Monte Pellegrino).
This collaboration, with the commitment of the regional department of cultural heritage and Sicilian identity which allocated the sums to carry out the transport to the museum, led to the free transfer of the work to Salinas by the Ministry of Defence.
“The recovery of the statue of Diana the Huntress – states the regional councilor for cultural heritage, Francesco Paolo Scarpinato – represents a happy moment of cooperation between various institutions”.