Paola Marzotto's L'Urpflanze Revisits Goethe's Palermo

Paola Marzotto's project L'Urpflanze is presented in an article by Gabriele Miccichè and Anita Romanello published on 14 October 2026. The piece centers on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's stay in Palermo, the celebrated conclusion of his Viaggio in Italia and a high point of the Grand Tour, when travelers, scholars, aesthetes and wealthy idlers set out to discover the South, Italian art and the earliest archaeological excavations. Goethe arrived on 13 April 1787, and Sicilians still quote his pronouncements with pride, among them the claim that Italy without Sicily leaves no image in the soul and that Sicily is the key to everything. The article notes that the Palermo Goethe knew no longer exists, destroyed by speculation, corruption and misguided interventions. It cites his landing under the heading Im licht von Palermo, in the light of Palermo, and his description of Monte Pellegrino as the most beautiful promontory in the world. Goethe also visited Villa Giulia, which had been inaugurated. The text is published by Doppiozero.