Vittorio Sgarbi, mayor of the little town of Salemi in eastern Sicily, has announced that he will offer dilapidated historic properties at the symbolic price of 1 euro to anyone prepared to restore them. Sgarbi, a well-known art critic, TV personality and former politician, already put the little-known town on the map when he appointed controversial AD man Oliviero Toscanini (whose stark and daring advertising campaigns for clothes baron Benetton, centred on tragic social problems, made him a household name) as his creativity advisor.

The properties Sgarbi hopes will be restored were severely damaged during the Belice earthquake in 1968 and were consequently abandoned by the local population. Salemi, one of Italys registered art cities dates back to the Arab occupation of Sicily. The name is thought to derive from the Arabic place of delight. A green and hilly area, it is surrounded by fields, vineyards and elegant old villas with luxuriant gardens, such as the Villaragut, based on the ancient Roman landscaped garden.

The town itself is a charming combination of Christian medieval architecture and labyrinthine alleys typical of Islamic citadels, centred around the Castle, a Gothic construction built over the ruins of a Saracen fortress.

Salemi is also known for its annual traditional Festival of Bread, which begins on St. Biagios Day on the 3^rd February and culminates in the Cene di San Giuseppe (Dinners of St. Joseph) on the 19^th March. The bread, made by the local women, is moulded into all kinds of intricate and fantastic shapes, inspired by Christian symbols, animals, plants and flowers. These are set up in elaborate compositions, decorating shrines and altars in the streets and piazzas. The Festival culminates in a grand feast where traditionally 101 dishes are served on largely local fare, based on cereals, vegetables, fruit and many varieties of cakes and biscuits.nMeanwhile, the idea of having a residence in Salemi has already attracted the attention of several leading Italian personalities, as well as singer Peter Gabriel, according to Sgarbi, who declares that he believes Salemi could become a second Pantelleria, the Sicilian island full of VIP holiday homes.

For information: www.comune.salemi.tp.it  www.prolocosalemi.it