Casa Cuseni "the finest house in Taormina"

ThinkSicily is proud to present a superb "English" home for sale... in Taormina, Sicily.

The English artist Robert Hawthorne Kitson arrived in Taormina in 1900 attracted by the Mediterranean weather and by the reputation and beauty of a resort that had long been on the Grand Tour of every aristocratic European. He bought a piece of land in a spectacular position overlooking the town and with views of the Bay of Naxos and Mount Etna. Casa Cuseni was completed six years later. Over the next century “the finest house in Taormina” was to welcome an incredible array of guests, from DH Lawrence to Bertrand Russell, Henry Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, Roald Dahl and Alan Whicker.

Stepping through the gate and looking up past a steeply terraced garden, the bustle of Taormina is suddenly a distant memory. The design of the garden is influenced by Lutyens and Sicilian tradition. It contains a number of unusual plants and has attracted garden tours and visitors from around the world. Arrival at the main terrace, dominated by a façade that is both imposing and understated, is rewarded by the spectacle of a snow covered Etna towering over the Bay of Naxos. The design of both the house and the gardens is a mixture of Arts and Crafts and Italian classical styles. On the ground floor is a drawing room, a library and a dining room designed, furnished and painted in 1906 by Sir Frank Brangwyn, an apprentice of William Morris an art nouveau pioneer who worked in Paris, Munich and Vienna. The drawing room and library are richly furnished with antiques from Kitson’s collection and leave the impression that little has changed here since he died in 1947. The first floor features 4 bedrooms and a design for 4 bathrooms (currently 3) and the top floor features a bedroom, bathroom and living room and a very large terrace with spectacular views.

Following his death in 1947, the house passed to his niece Daphne Phelps, who has left a record of her experience of living here for over five decades in her book “A House in Sicily”. Daphne took the house into its second era by opening its rooms and gardens to paying guests, and the house found a niche amongst the elite of artistic and literary circles. A project for an extensive and sensitive restoration has been approved, including the rejuvenation of least five bedrooms, the installation of new bathrooms and the modernisation of the original pool (which was designed in such a way as to carry a reflection of Mount Etna, illumated by the full moon).

Daphne died in 2005, and her descendents have decided to engage Think Sicily and Knight Frank to identify a purchaser to take the house to its third era. Their website casacuseni.org gives an excellent insight into the fascinating history of the house.

Any interest in purchasing this wonderful piece of history in an unparalelled location should be addressed to Huw Beaugie at estates@thinksicily.com or +44 (0)20 7377 8518

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