# Quattro Canti

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Canonical page: https://mytuur.com/en/city/palermo/spot/quattro-canti/

Content updated: 2026-06-22

Quattro Canti stands in Palermo, Italy, where Via Maqueda crosses Corso Vittorio Emanuele at the city’s historic centre. Its octagonal space is bordered by four concave façades, each shaped with columns, fountains, balconies, and layered decoration. Doric columns support the lower sections, Ionic forms occupy the middle, and Composite details crown the upper levels. A pedestrian zone surrounds the intersection, with Fontana Pretoria, historic churches, and palaces nearby.

Spanish rule shaped the square between 1608 and 1621, when Giulio Lasso began the design and Mariano Smiriglio completed it. Four lower statues represent spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Above them stand marble figures of Charles V, Philip II, Philip III, and Philip IV, installed in 1661 after replacing bronze statues. Saint Cristina, Saint Ninfa, Saint Oliva, and Saint Agata crown the façades as Palermo’s historic quarters’ patron saints. The four sides mark Capo, Albergheria, Kalsa, and Loggia, dividing the city into its traditional mandamenti.

Sunlight reaches at least one façade throughout the day, giving the square its name Teatro del Sole, or Sun Theatre. Angels carrying palms and crowns decorate the balcony pediments above the statues. The Spanish royal coat of arms occupies the attic, while basins beneath the fountains reflect later changes to the street level. Horse-drawn carriages often wait nearby, adding a moving detail to this carefully staged Baroque crossroads.

- City: [Palermo](https://mytuur.com/en/city/palermo/)

## Photos

- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_QuattroCanti_68c17c56e7953b1337018ab6_0.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Palermo1\(js\).jpg)
- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_QuattroCanti_68c17c56e7953b1337018ab6_1.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Palermo-Quattro-Canti-bjs2007-03.jpg)
- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_QuattroCanti_68c17c56e7953b1337018ab6_2.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Corner_1_-_Quattro_canti_-_Palermo_-_Italy_2015.JPG)
- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_QuattroCanti_68c17c56e7953b1337018ab6_3.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Palermo-Quattro-Canti-bjs2007-01.jpg)
- ![](https://mytuur-bucket.s3.amazonaws.com/image_QuattroCanti_68c17c56e7953b1337018ab6_4.jpg) — [Image: wikimedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Corner_3_-_Quattro_canti_-_Palermo_-_Italy_2015.JPG)

Spots like this one are the stops myTuur strings into tours through Palermo. In the app, each story begins where you stand: walk up to a spot and it starts, read it on screen or listen as you go, then follow the route to the next one.

## What is myTuur?

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