Sicilian wine, saltpans, and the landing point that changed Italian history
Marsala sits on Sicily's westernmost tip, facing the shallow, island-studded lagoon of the Stagnone — a place of extraordinary light, particularly at sunset over the saltpans and windmills that still produce Sicilian sea salt by the same method used for a thousand years. The city is synonymous with its fortified wine (marsala DOC), developed by English merchant John Woodhouse in the 18th century and later championed by Vincenzo Florio — the cellars of the major producers line the seafront and offer tastings. Marsala is also the site where Giuseppe Garibaldi landed in 1860 with his Thousand Re…
The Phoenicians established a settlement here in the 8th century BC, which grew into the Carthaginian stronghold of Lilybaeum — the last Carthaginian foothold in Sicily during the First Punic War, it withstood a Roman siege for 60 years (250–241 BC) and only surrendered by treaty. The Romans renamed it Lilybaeum and made it the main departure point for Africa; the submerged remains of a Carthaginian warship from the era of the Punic Wars was discovered offshore in 1971 and is now displayed in the Archaeological Museum. The Arab name 'Marsala' (Port of God, or Port of Ali, depending on the ety…