Torre della Tonnara dell'Ursa
The toponym may be a Sicilian corruption of the Arabic toponym " marsah ," meaning port. In fact, it is a fairly common toponym in Sicily, and the best-known example is Marsala, "the port of Allah." However, given the lack of evidence of a port in situ, and the shallow waters, it could derive from the Arabic toponym " ìrsa, " meaning more simply, anchorage, mooring.
The tower stands in the locality of Fondo Orsa , which is located on the extreme tip of a low, rocky peninsula that forms a bend to the east with a small, shallow bay, in the province of Palermo, within the municipality of Cinisi.
The tonnara and the tower can be reached by following a small service road shortly after the Marina di Cinisi junction of the Palermo - Mazara del Vallo motorway, or following the branch for Punta Raisi in the direction of Falcone and Borsellino Airport at the Villagrazia di Carini junction. .
The “Tonnara dell'Orsa” stop of the Palermo - Airport subway has not been in operation since its virtual inauguration, although it is perfectly complete and functional. The internal road that once connected the tower with Cinisi now stops right at the car park serving the subway station. Continuing on foot you can use a pedestrian underpass below the motorway and reach the tower (attention: in winter it is often flooded).
The whole complex is owned by the Municipality of Cinisi, which has provisionally granted some rooms to the local section of Legambiente which can be contacted for a possible guided tour.
Source: Wikipedia
Card insertion: Ignazio Caloggero
Informational contributions : Web
Photo: Google
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