Palazzo Abatellis (Galleria Regionale della Sicilia)

Palazzo Abatellis stands at Via Alloro 4 in the Kalsa district of Palermo, Sicily, about ten minutes on foot from Quattro Canti. Built in the late 15th century in a Catalan late-Gothic style with Renaissance touches, it was badly damaged in the Second World War and restored by the architect Carlo Scarpa in the 1950s. It now houses the Galleria Regionale della Sicilia, the island's main collection of medieval and Renaissance art. The most famous exhibit is the large fresco Triumph of Death, a 15th-century work that fills a hall with a skeletal rider on a horse trampling people of all ranks. Other highlights include Antonello da Messina's Annunciata, a small panel painting of the Virgin that is among the best-known Sicilian paintings, and Francesco Laurana's marble bust of Eleonora of Aragon. The collection also includes sculpture, ceramics and works in other media arranged through the rooms around a courtyard. Scarpa's display design, with its simple supports and careful lighting, is itself part of the interest. A visit takes one to one and a half hours, and the museum is rarely crowded, so weekday mornings are the calmest. It is generally closed on Monday, and hours on Sunday are shorter. Admission is about EUR 8, with reductions and free entry for under-18 EU residents, and regional museums are often free on the first Sunday of the month. The rooms are small and quiet, and photography rules vary, so check the signs. The museum is close to the Kalsa waterfront and other palaces, and it fits well alongside a walk along Via Alloro.