The Leopard: Palermo and Sicily

The novel opens in May 1860, as Garibaldi's Redshirts land on the Sicilian coast, and the Salina family is in Palermo. The Prince, a man of the old order, indulges his hobby of amateur astronomy. Lampedusa drew his Villa Salina from the Villa Lampedusa outside Palermo, which in the Prince's day was known as the Observatory of the Prince of Lampedusa.

Location precision: Lampedusa's estate is renamed Salina and the novel's villa is not an exact copy; the pin marks Villa Lampedusa.

Lampedusa's family town palace is never named in the novel, but several of its rooms appear in it. The building did not survive the war intact: Allied bombing left it a near-ruin. With no pin and no visit, this stop is one to read about rather than see. Giuseppe Tomasi was born in Palermo, son of Giulio Maria Tomasi, Prince of Lampedusa.

Location precision: The palace appears only through its rooms and the sources consulted give no exact address, so this stop is left unpinned.

The Salinas travel inland to their estate, and on arrival at Donnafugata the family is greeted by raucous, provincial fanfare. The town is certainly Santa Margherita di Belice, and the palace the Palazzo Filangeri-Cutò, though the palace in the novel is considerably larger and more elaborate than the original. The 1968 earthquake wrecked the real one. Only the facade survived, now partly rebuilt, and it houses the Gattopardo Museum, a theatre and a literary park.

Location precision: Donnafugata is a fictional name, and its palace is larger than the real one; the pin marks the Palazzo Filangeri-Cutò.

Visitor guidance: The rebuilt palazzo houses the Gattopardo Museum in Santa Margherita di Belice.

When the Prince reaches Donnafugata, the novel gives him a noisy, provincial welcome. In the same chapter the mayor, Don Calogero Sedara, turns out to have become wealthy through dubious business transactions and political influence. For his 1963 film, Luchino Visconti did not go to the real town but chose Ciminna as the backdrop. The pin marks the town, not a single building.

Location precision: The film used the town of Ciminna as backdrop, not one named building; the pin marks the town.

In Chapter 6 Angelica is introduced to Palermo society at a sumptuous ball and is a success. The Prince dances with her and for a moment regains his joy. Visconti staged the scene in the ballroom of Palazzo Valguarnera-Gangi, a palace in Palermo, so the pin marks a film stand-in and not a place named in the book. Some rooms can be toured by reservation, and the ballroom may be hired for events.

Location precision: The ball takes place in the novel only; the pin marks the Palermo palace used as the film's ballroom.

Visitor guidance: Some rooms are toured by reservation; the rest of the house is a private residence.