Sicily is not an island, but a "continent" of European art and cultural history. The knowledgeable author Brigit Carnabuci, who is based in Sicily, explores prehistoric and ancient cultures, interprets the impressively preserved temples of the Greeks in their function, and deciphers stylistic features and iconographic programs of significant structures from the Arab-Byzantine cultural synthesis. Numerous testimonies from Phoenician, Roman, Norman, Staufer, and Spanish times are also honored. A chapter is dedicated to the flourishing period of Sicily during the Baroque. The travel routes begin in the cities located below Mount Etna: the island's second-largest city, Catania, with its Baroque-influenced urban landscape, and Taormina, with its wonderful location between a coastline rich in bays and the volcano. Following that, the Greek settlement of Syracuse and its old town are discussed.