Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Giummare - Sciacca

The church and monastery of Santa Maria di Valverde or delle Giummare were founded in the early 12th century by the Norman countess Juliet, a famous lady of Sciacca from 1100 to 1136, who spent her leisure time near the well that is named after her.

The name " delle Giummare " is derived from the type of dwarf palm, locally called " Giummara" .

Apart from the portal and the central window, which are Baroque, the rest is reminiscent of a medieval castle . The church broke through the axis of the 'double' monastery, inhabited, as permitted by canon law, by nuns and Cluniac monks. Two dwarf palms grow on either side of the portal in memory of the giummare (the Saccense name for palm trees).

The church contains works of art including canvases by Gaspare Testone from Saccia, paintings and frescoes by Mariano Rossi.

During the war, Father Michele Arena collected foundlings here and gave them a home.

Willem Vandenameele