Ettore Majorana Foundation

The Ettore Majorana Foundation and Centre for Scientific Culture is an international scientific institution based in Erice that hosts advanced courses and workshops across all fields of science. Founded in 1963 by physicist Antonino Zichichi, it operates from historic buildings throughout the medieval village — some sessions take place in the deconsecrated church of San Rocco, others in the restored San Domenico complex.

The centre gives Erice a curious dual identity: a medieval hilltop village that also hosts Nobel laureates and international physicists for intensive workshops throughout the year. The scientific events are not generally open to the public, but the buildings themselves can be visited, and the foundation has contributed significantly to the preservation of several of Erice's historic structures.

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The foundation is named after Ettore Majorana, the brilliant Sicilian physicist who disappeared in 1938 at the age of 31 while on a ferry from Palermo to Naples. His fate has never been established. The centre uses his name to connect Erice's ancient past — as a place of learning and sanctuary — to a tradition of serious scientific inquiry.

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