MESSINA GATE - Porta Messina

Messina Gate marks the entrance to the old town centre on the north side of the city. Although there probably was a previous passage in older era, the door was built during Bourbon domination in the nineteenth century. The structure, in white marble blocks of Taormina, appears the most recent among the city gates and it was called Ferdinandea gate until the Unity of Italy. At that time, King Ferdinand IV of Bourbon had decided to grant Taormina the senatorial rank and some immunities for its loyalty to the crown. This loyalty was proved by the realisation of the commemorative plaque, which is still below the Habsburg-Bourbon symbol: the double eagle placed on the top of the arch. The Ferdinandea gate was entrusted to the citizens in 1808.