Of Dust and Light

Stones of Ortygia

📍Ortygia, Sicily — March 2018

Island heart of Siracusa. Founded by the Greeks.
A mosaic of Mediterranean civilizations — revealed in churches, markets, and ruins.

Black-and-white photograph of the Duomo of Ortygia in Siracusa, Sicily, showing its ornate baroque façade with columns, statues, and intricate carvings. People stroll and sit in the sunlit square, while large silhouetted tropical leaves frame the right side of the image.

I walk the streets, the stones heavy with history.
Salt air threads the alleys, voices rising and falling like tides.
The past drifts quietly around me.

Black and white photo of a small motorboat crossing the calm waterfront in Ortygia, Siracusa, with historic buildings, parked cars, and restaurant signs in the background.
Black and white photo of the ruins of the Apollo Temple in Ortygia, Siracusa, showing weathered stone columns and arches with modern buildings and palm trees in the background.
Black and white photo of a food vendor in Ortygia, Siracusa, interacting with smiling customers across a counter, surrounded by cheese and kitchen tools in a lively market setting.
Black and white photo of a cobblestone alley in Ortygia, Siracusa, with historic buildings, balconies, a large palm tree, and a church partially visible in the background
Black and white photo of Ortygia’s eastern seafront in Siracusa, Italy, showing historic Mediterranean buildings, with reflections shimmering on the calm sea and rocky foreground.

I enter the Duomo — once a temple, still a cathedral of stone.

Black and white photo of a person standing before massive stone columns and wrought iron gates at the Cathedral of Ortygia in Siracusa, Sicily.

One building.
Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Muslim, Catholic.
The Mediterranean carved in stone.

Marble statue of Saint Peter in front of a columned façade in Ortygia, holding a large key and a book, dramatically lit against a dark background to emphasize the intricate carving and symbolic gesture.
Close-up of the marble statue of Saint Paul in front of the Cathedral of Ortygia, dramatically lit against a black background, highlighting his expressive gesture and detailed features.
A dramatic black-and-white detail of the Diana Fountain in Ortygia, featuring a rearing horse and mythological figure amid dynamic sprays of water, with the historic Banco di Sicilia building in the background.

Streetlights scatter on the waves.
The island exhales.
Night settles in Ortygia.

Black and white photo of Ortygia’s eastern seafront in Siracusa, Italy, showing historic Mediterranean buildings lit at night, with reflections shimmering on the calm sea and rocky foreground.

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Antonio Violi | Seeking stories in dust, light, and time.