PATERNO  , a

town of Sicily, in the province of Catania, 11 m . W.N.W. of Catania by rail, at the southern foot of Mt Etna . Pop . (1881), 15,230; (1901), 20,098 (town), 22,857 (commune) . The castle, originally erected in 1073, upon the acropolis of the ancient Hybla Minor or Galeatis, has a square tower and a chapel with frescoes belonging to the 14th century . Some mosaic pavements still exist under the houses in the Strada dell' Ospedale, and remains of baths and of an ancient bridge over the Simeto on the road to Centuripa are to be seen in the neighbourhood . The place was unsuccessfully besieged by the Athenian forces in the summer of 415 B.C .