A town on the Italian island of Sicily has gone viral for its unique shape.
The small town of Centuripe is known for its myriad of Roman ruins and rare ancient sculptures, but a drone shot from the air has spotted its odd shape: an uncanny resemblance to a person with arms outstretched.
Photographer and drone pilot Pio Andrea Peri noticed the unusual shape of his hometown on Google Earth and decided to use his drone to see if it was true.
He flew his drone as high as he could over the city and started taking photos.
To his surprise, it revealed the form of a human being.
But due to the limitations of her drone, Peri reportedly needed to stitch multiple photos together to fit the entire town.
Aerial images show two longer spans of buildings resembling ‘arms’ and another two resembling ‘legs’, while a fifth shorter span forms the ‘head’.
“It was a difficult shot to create,” he said. “I had to use multiple shots due to the height limit of the drone.”
Peri took the snapshots in 2021 and they have since resurfaced on social media with many in awe of the town’s resemblance to a person.
“There are those who look from above and see a man lying down, then there are those who see a starfish… And you? What do you see watching Centuripe? she asked his Instagram followers along with one of the aerial shots of her.
“Wow, this town is in such an amazing shape,” one person replied.
“I love this! I see a man living free with the land!” wrote another.
Meanwhile, a local thanked the photographer for his work.
“Centuripe deserved some visibility and we are honored that a teacher like you gave it to him. Beautiful photos,” they wrote.
Others described the shape of the town as “crazy”, “incredible” and “great”.
“I would love to see how people move. I see a path around the outer edge. Very interesting,” wrote one Facebook user.
“I’m on my way from right arm should be left arm oh I’d say in an hour or so,” said another.
“In a country shaped like a boot, there is a people shaped like a person,” added a third.
However, while many were in awe of Peri’s images, some accused him of manipulating them.
“The entire world was in disbelief at the strange shape of this city. Many did not believe it was true, and thought that I had drawn the photo on the PC,” Pio said, according to the report. Daily mail.
“But when they found out the truth from searching Google Earth, many of them personally apologized for what they told me.”
“I am proud of the photos and happy with my results; Being self-taught, I believe a lot in what I do.”
He explained how difficult it was to create the final image.
“I overlaid about 18 shots manually in post production and it took me two hours of editing. I am very happy with the result.”
At that time, the mayor of the town invited the photographer Peri to set up an exhibition of his photographs.
The ancient city of Centuripe, built on a hill at about 730 m above sea level, has a population of about 5,000.
The current layout and layout of the town is said to date back to the 16th century, with its tiny winding streets leading to terraced buildings.
The picturesque alleyways are reportedly designed for the transport of animals.
Due to its high position, the Italian general Giuseppe Garibaldi called Centuripe “the balcony of Sicily”.
From high above the city, the famous Mount Etna, one of the world’s most active volcanoes, is visible in the distance, as are panoramic views of the surrounding countryside.