Scario is a traditional settlement on the north-east coast of the island of Salina (Aeolian Islands, north-east of Sicily). The village, documented by the sources since the 19th century, was still inhabited until the early 20th century, before it was abandoned. Located on a sloping rocky hill forming a small bay, the settlement was arranged around two nuclei, one on the east side of the bay (Borgo di Levante), the other on the west side (Borgo di Ponente).
The village hosted a community of fishermen with their families, and included a number a dwellings and recoveries for the storage of the fishing equipment and the boats. The toponym itself, meaning berth in the local dialect, refers to the marine activities practiced by the villagers. Nowadays most of the twenty buildings still in place, constructed with traditional techniques and materials, are in ruins.
Settlements like the Scario were very common in the Aeolian Islands, and are documented by the sources and the toponymy. Yet, none of them survived, because they decayed after abandonment or were entirely transformed for touristic exploitation, losing completely their original features. Scario, therefore, requires protection and preservation because its uniqueness as a historical and anthropological monument of primary importance.In 1998, the Borough of Malfa, including the territory of Scario, approved with a decree a proposal of conservation submitted by Roberto Nardi, director of the CCA. After the move of the local administration, the Authority for Cultural Heritage of Sicily established that the site should be protected, promulgating two ordnances in 1999 and 2000.
At the same time, the UNESCO included the entire territory of the Aeolian archipelago in the World Heritage List for the outstanding universal value of its natural and archaeological sites. In 2011, the Borough of Malfa appointed Roberto Nardi as a consultant for the conservation of the old fishermen’s village. The director of the CCA together with Gianfranco Celi, an officer of the planning department of the Borough of Malfa, elaborated a project for the conservation and restoration of Scario.
The project devised by Nardi and Celi is strictly respectful of the national and international conventions on restoration and preservation of the sites of historical and cultural relevance (The Venice Charter, 1964 – Carta Italiana del Restauro, 1972). It considers not only the conservation of the site, but also its use for educational purposes. The plan encompasses an accurate documentation of the village; the conservation of all the extant buildings and ruins; limited restoration works using traditional techniques and materials; the preparation of explicative panels and the setting of an educational center; the creation of an itinerary for visitors through the old roads and paths.
Project Designer: Gianfranco Celi (Planning Dept., Borough of Malfa) and Roberto Nardi (CCA)
Graphic Documentation: Gianfranco Celi and Roberto Nardi