The earliest evidence of habitation in Sicily dates from 13,000 B.C. It comes in the form of cave paintings near Palermo. In Rocchicella, in the Margi river valley of Catania province, flint tools and the remains of domesticated animals indicate the presence of an 11th-century culture. Grinding stones and the remains of a hearth and two platforms made of terracotta indicate continued human habitation on that site in the Early Bronze Age.

The so-called “Castellucio Culture” established itself during the Intermediate Bronze Age (around 2000) on the eastern part of the island, where important evidence of this civilization’s hierarchical structure can be found on tomb facades, which indicate the resting places of the wealthy and powerful.

The Lipari-Ausonian Culture developed in the late Bronze Age (1200-900 B.C.) on the Aeolian Islands. These people were believed to have come from Italy. There is also conclusive evidence of the Pantalaria culture, lasting from 1200 to 600 B.C., which can be found as far west as Caltanisetta, near the middle of the island. Its beautiful red clay pottery can be viewed in the Museo Archaeologico Regionale in Siracusa.

Prehistoric Tomb, Necropolis of Pantalica