>The Knights Templar are also represented by the Portico dei Cavalieri Templari. This gate includes fine Gothic arches.
>Brindisi>’s principal museum is the Museo Archeologico Provinciale Francesco Ribezzo. It houses collections of Roman and other ancient artifacts found in the local area. One of its greatest prizes is a beautiful marble bust of the Emperor Trajan.
>The Biblioteca Arcivescovile De Leo is housed within the Palazzo del Seminario (174–44). Its collection includes several incunabula and manuscripts.
>The Monumento al Marinaio, constructed in 1933, is shaped like a 52 m high giant rudder.
>About 2 km N of the city is the 13th / early 14th century Romanesque-Gothic church of S. Maria del Casele. It has a banded façade of colored stones. The single-aisled interior is decorated with 14th century frescoes. In the lunette of the inside portal is a beautiful Byzantine-inspired “Universal Judgment” by Rinaldo da Taranto. In the choir is a damaged, but still impressive, fresco depicting the “Deposition.”
Events:
Economy: Fishing, food-canning, flour-milling.
The port of Brindisi accommodates shipping lines linking Italy and other central European countries with Greece, the Middle East and Asia. A major airport is also located here.
Brindisi (di) Montagna> (PZ): a commune (area: 59.8 km²; alt. 800 m) in Basilicata located 19 km E of Potenza. It is situated between two torrents to the right of the river Basento. Population: 949 (1991).
Brindisium>: an ancient name for Brindisium. Also see Brundisium.
Brittoli> (PE): A commune (area: 15.8 km²; alt. 781 m) in Abruzzo located 42 km SW of Pescara. It is situated on a spur between the valleys of two torrential streams, the Nora and the Cigno. It has an agriculturally based economy. Population: 470 (1991).
broccoli: A vegetable much favored in Sicily. Broccoli sellers would sell their wares in the streets of Palermo, drawing their customers with musical calls resembling yodeling.
brodetto alla pescarese: A popular chili-based dish from Pescara, in Abruzzo.
Brognaturo (VV): A commune (>area: 23 km²; alt. 755 m) in the province of Vibo Valentia. Located 40 km E of Vibo Valentia, it is situated to the right of the river Ancinale. Population: 833 (1991).
Brolo (ME): A commune (area: 7.86 km²; alt. 450 m) in the province of Messina. Located 60 km W of Messina, it is situated on the N coast of Sicily, near the river Sant’Angelo. Population: 5,589 (2006e); 5,071 (1991). Although principally an agricultural commune, it has also developed into a summer resort.
History: Brolo was the scene of heavy fighting during World War II and was finally freed by the Allies on August 13, 1943.
Points of Interest: The principal monument is a square tower castle founded by Emperor Frederick II in the 13th century.
Bronte (CT): A commune (area: 285.9 km²; alt. 793 m) in the province of Catania. Located 48 km NW of Catania, it is situated on the W slope of Mt. Etna, to the left of the river Simeto. Population: 19,147 (2006e); 18,512 (2001); 18,689 (1991).
Tradition holds that the town founded in the distant past by the Cyclopes. Although it is known that a settlement has existed here since ancient times, the identities of the true founders of the town remain uncertain. The present center dates back to c1485 when a group of Albanian refugees were allowed to settle here. These refugees were related to similar groups who founded centers at Biancavilla (CT) and Piana degli Albanesi (PA).
As a Sicilian duchy, it was bestowed of Horatio Nelson in 1799 by Ferdinand IV of the Two Sicilies. Under Sicilian law, the fief was inherited by the eldest daughter of Nelson’s brother, the first Duke, rather than the male heirs of his eldest sister, as would be the case in English practice. The estate remained in the family for generations afterward. Their residence, however, was at Manaice, on the far side of the estate, rather than at the town of Bronte. The English traveler, writing in the early 20th Century, described the citizens of Bronte as “the most villainous people in Sicily.” The town was threatened by lava flows from nearby Mt. Etna in 1603, 1610, 1727, 1763, 1787, and 1843. During World War I it suffered damage from bombing in 1943.