The eyes of the Blackmoor vase The stare of the Blackmoor pottery head vase on the second floor of Palazzo Notar Nicchi, Polizzi Generosa, is penetrating, his eyes: dark and large. It is not the more gentile gaze of many of the Moor pottery heads seen on open terraces and columns all over the island; filled with plants.

There is a road: the SP119, which leaves Polizzi Generosa under the high arches of the old aqueduct past the town’s largest fountain filled with clear spring water from the Madonie Moutains. And, it passes through the silence of majestic mountains and deep forests only kilometres out of town. 

A battlefield We call the SP119 The Piano Battaglia Road; it leads the way to the historic battlefield Piano Battaglia where, I came to learn from Raleigh Trevelyan's detailed read 'The Companion Guide to Sicily', the conflict between the conquering Normans and the ruling Arabs was played out in 1069.