Roccamena
Roccamena, a small municipality in Sicily with a recent history
Roccamena is a municipality in the metropolitan city of Palermo in Sicily, with a population of about 1370 inhabitants. The urban center was founded by Giuseppe Beccadelli di Bologna in the second half of the 19th century and is located on one of the estates added to the fiefdom of Sparacia, which was part of the vast heritage of the Jesuits. In 1767, expropriations took place and the territory became part of the reform plan promoted by Bernardo Tanucci, which aimed to promote the redistribution of the possessions of the former Jesuits in favor of small landowners.
The origin of the name "Roccamena"
In 1779, Don Gaetano Morales, who acted as a proxy for Giuseppe Beccadelli, purchased the Feudo di Sparacia and, under the guidance of the prince, began the establishment of several inhabited centers, including the village of Roccamena. The name seems to derive from the exclamation of the prince: "Che rocca amena!" because he was struck by the beauty of the landscape, characterized by rocky asperities that seem to look out from the roundness of the hill on which the center stands. There is doubt whether the "Rocca amena" that elicited the prince's exclamation was the one located in the original nucleus of the small center, the "quattro case" hamlet, or whether it was due to the rocky outcrop of Monte Maranfusa, which rises to the northeast of the then "quattro case" hamlet.
The development of the urban center
As already mentioned, the center developed around a nucleus called "Le Quattro Case," which may be identified with the ancient dwellings that rise above the urban nucleus in the eponymous district. The first parish register dates back to 1798, the date to which the birth of Roccamena is traditionally traced. The history of the village until 1833, when it became a fraction of Corleone, is poorly documented.
The municipality of Roccamena
On November 28, 1846, with a Royal Decree, the village was elevated to Municipality and was assigned some former fiefs as its territory, but its full autonomy was only recognized in 1998 with a ministerial decree from the Ministry of the Interior. The new municipality depended on the district of Corleone and the diocese of Monreale. The very location of Roccamena represents valid testimony to the importance that its territory has had in the past: the center is located between the two branches of the Belice River, known in the past as the Crimiso, where in 342 BC the famous battle led by the Greek leader Timoleon was fought.
Archaeology in Roccamena
In the territory of Roccamena, there is an interesting archaeological site located on Monte Maranfusa, a large rock well defended naturally by precipitous walls on all sides and on whose summit the ruins of a fortress, the Calatrasi Castle, can be admired. It was already a fiefdom of the Norman Malcovenant, which the Arab geographer and traveler Idrisi describes in his "Book of King Roger" as "an impressive castle and a primitive and reliable stronghold".
In conclusion, Roccamena is a municipality with a recent history that reveals interesting characteristics of the Sicilian territory. Its location and the presence of archaeological sites make it a center of great historical and cultural interest.
