Laskari (Sicily)

The municipality is located in the northeast of the province of Palermo, about 66 km from the capital. It borders with the communes of Cefalu , Gratteri , Collesano , Campofelice di Rocella and the Tyrrhenian Sea . The climate is temperate with hot, dry summers and cool rainy winters. The Palermo-Messina railway line with the railway station ^[1] passes through the territory of the commune.

In 1693, a group of peasants from Gratteri moved from the mountains to a plain by the sea for the winter quarters and settled at an abandoned tower on the site of the future commune in the area of ​​Li-Grutti (c . Li Grutti ), that is, the Cave. The growth of the community led to the fact that Bishop Cefalu and Prince Ventimiglia, Senor Gratteri, assigned a chaplain to her and appointed a rent. Thus, a parish was founded and a church dedicated to Saint Euthymius, the patron saint of the daughter of the prince who bore this name, appeared.

Near the tower, which became a bell tower, peasants began to build houses. Baron Gaetano Ventimiglia named the new settlement Laskari, thereby indicating his origin from the imperial dynasty of Laskaris who ruled Byzantium ^[2] .

In 1840, having separated from Gratteri, Laskari received the status of an independent commune with its own administration. In 1890, the commune was granted the right to local land to increase the urban area and confirm autonomy from Gratteri. However, this right was finally recognized for Laskari only in October 1929.

Numerous festivals take place in Laskari in the summer - the feast of the patron saint of the commune, the lemon festival, an exhibition of crafts, concerts. In late August, the commune held a fair of products of local peasants and artisans. In Laskari, the Holy Crucifixion is especially revered. According to legend, this crucifix from cypress was miraculously acquired by a shepherd.

The municipality has football clubs Livari Polivosportiva, which plays in group B of the Sicily Category I football championship, and Oratorio don Bosco, who plays in group B of series D of the same championship.

Attractions

The famous landmark of Laskari is the Church of St. Michael the Archangel, built next to the bell tower in 1700. In it you can admire the beautiful inlay of marble, a golden donor guardian, a silver cross donated to the parish by local seniors from the genus Ventimiglia, and an excellent cypress crucifix of the work of the unknown ^[3] .

• Lascari (Italian) . Portaleabruzzo.com. Archived June 14, 2013.
• Official site (Italian) (inaccessible link) . Сomune.lascari.pa.it. Archived June 14, 2013.
• Salvatore Ilardo, Salvatore Moncada, Silvana Schittino. Un libro dedicato alla storia di Lascari e le sue torri (Italian) (link not available) . Cefalunews.net. Archived June 14, 2013.