Porta Nuova

The Porta Nuova in Palermo is an example of a triumphal monument built in the western part of the city by Charles V in 1535.

Its construction was decided in celebration of the military victory in Africa and was not completed until 1569. Its final design was by Gaspare Guercio, who had to rebuild it exactly true to the original after an adjacent gunpowder store exploded. As a result, the two façades have two different styles; one is a classical façade, facing the city, with the classic Renaissance triumphal arch appearance on which are the four busts of the virtues: Peace, Justice, Truth and Abundance. The other façade, the external one, is in the form of a cusp covered with majolica tiles on which is drawn an eagle in the act of flying and has telamons with Charles V in the act of subduing the Moors in Tunisia.