Giuseppe Tomasi of Lampedusa statue

Statue of Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa

Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa (Palermo, 23 December 1896 - Rome, 23 July 1957) was an Italian nobleman and writer. The last heir of the Tomasi family, writer of the famous novel "The Leopard", whose story develops in a small village called Donnafugata, which is very reminiscent of the holy city of Duke Giulio, founder of Palma di Montechiaro.

In 1959 the novel won the Strega Prize, effectively becoming the first Italian best seller with over 250,000 copies sold in 8 months. The novel was adapted into the 1963 film of the same name, directed by Luchino Visconti and starring Burt Lancaster, Claudia Cardinale and Alain Delon.