Origins of Malvasia di Salina
According to popular tradition, the start of the cultivation of Malvasia in Salina is linked to the arrival on the island of Venetian colonists.
These settlers from Candia brought to the island the vine that was grown in Monembasia and which then gave rise to the famous Malvasia di Salina.
Confirmation of the arrival of the Venetians in Salina, of the foundation for their work of the village of Santa Marina , according to some scholars, the introduction of the cult of Santa Marina di Bitinia with the construction of a church dedicated to her and the start of the cultivation of Malvasia occurs with the discovery of a painting oil on canvas in a naive style datable in the middle Nineteenth century which represents, by explicit signature, the birth of the village of Santa Marina.
The picture depicts a man dressed in a Venetian style, carrying two baskets on his arms, one with scrolls that probably indicate possession of the concessions emphyteutics issued by the bishop of Lipari and the other bunches of grapes that indicate the arrival of Malvasia on the island. On the shore there is a boat with the image on the sail of Santa Marina di Bitinia and at the stern a small lion of San Marco that surmounts the island of Candia. On the coast to the south the church of Santa Marina and in the background the tip of Lingua.
