Fontana Aretusa

Syracuse


Down the winding main street from the cathedral is this ancient spring, where fresh water still bubbles up just as it did in ancient times when it was the city's main water supply. Legend has it that the goddess Artemis transformed her beautiful handmaiden Aretusa into the spring to protect her from the unwelcome attention of the river god Alpheus.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Syracuse attractions

1. Galleria Regionale di Palazzo Bellomo

0.09 MILES

Housed in a 13th-century Catalan-Gothic palace, this art museum's eclectic collection ranges from early Byzantine and Norman stonework to 19th-century…

2. Chiesa di Santa Lucia alla Badia

0.1 MILES

The Chiesa di Santa Lucia alla Badia is dedicated to the city's patron saint, St Lucy, martyred in Syracuse during the reign of the Roman emperor…

3. Palazzo Arcivescovile

0.14 MILES

The elegant, 17th-century Palazzo Arcivescovile is home to the Biblioteca Alagoniana and some rare 13th-century manuscripts.

4. Piazza del Duomo

0.15 MILES

Syracuse's showpiece square is a masterpiece of baroque town planning. A long, rectangular piazza flanked by flamboyant palazzi, it sits on what was once…

5. Duomo

0.16 MILES

Built on the skeleton of a 5th-century BC Greek temple to Athena (note the Doric columns still visible inside and out), Syracuse's 7th-century cathedral…

6. Palazzo Beneventano del Bosco

0.19 MILES

In the northwestern corner of Piazza del Duomo is the Palazzo Beneventano del Bosco. While its origins are medieval, the baroque palace you see today is…

7. Palazzo Municipale

0.19 MILES

The Palazzo Municipale or Palazzo Senatoriale was built in 1629 by the Spanish architect Juan Vermexio, who was nicknamed 'Il Lucertolone' or 'the lizard'…

8. Artemision

0.19 MILES

Loitering beneath Palazzo Municipale are the scant remains of a 6th-century-BC Greek temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis, as well as the modest traces…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "italy/sicily/syracuse/attractions/fontana-aretusa/a/poi-sig/471820/360014",
      "destination": "Syracuse",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "Italy",
      "region": "Sicily",
      "city": "Syracuse",
      "position": "superzone"
    }