Catania

The theatre of taste

a piscariaA few metres from the cathedral, just past Porta Uzeda, is the fish market, “a piscaria”. It has been home to one of Catania’s historical markets since the early 19th century.
Modest in size, it is now a destination for fish connoisseurs and tourists.
Amidst the colours of red mullet and black mussel shells, the vendors’ shouts mingle with the smell.
Though rather strong and pungent, it’s definitely authentic and encourages visitors to take some fish home. Spices can also be found, to accompany the market purchases. Packaged in unidentified plastic bags, they tell a story of cultural influences steeped in past and present that reveal and release aromas of ancient origin. Observing in this way brings you closer to the beauty of these places.
The market of Catania is a theatre of taste, animated by the traders’ shouts, where you can revel in an atmosphere where time seems to stand still.

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Some masterpieces

The chocolate of Modica

A new site for a new city

A colourful floor

A square as the heart of the city

Norman apses

The Baroque town by the sea

The internal colours

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the Mother Church of San Nicolò and of the Santissimo Salvatore

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Giuliano ai Crociferi

A hall for the feasts

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Feasting in Palazzolo

The colours of the cathedral

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A miniature city

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the staircase of Santa Maria del Monte

Searching for colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Giovanni Evangelista

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Freedom of worship and the role of the Catholic Church in the diffusion of Baroque

A city in colour

From the contrast of the exterior to the internal jubilation of colours

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Some prestigious works

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The wall comes to life

A triumph of colour

A museum to save a tradition

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The two churches

A talking palace

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A feast only for Scicli

An eagle-shaped city

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Many owners, one palace

Wonderful quick decorations

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The façade used as a puppet theatre

One city, three sites

Discovering the mother church

The city of museums

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The church of Carmine

A prominent church

Feast days

New roads for Catania

Prominent façade

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Maiolica of the staircase

Between white and black

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the church of Santa Maria del Carmelo

The senses tell the story of the Badia di Sant’Agata

A new site for a new church

A majestic and luminous church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Burgos crucifix

A long reconstruction

Church of San Giuliano (St. Julian) on Via dei Crociferi: reconstruction

The senses tell the Benedictine Monastery and San NicoIò l’Arena

The Staircase of Angels

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The role of the religious orders in rebuilding the Val di Noto

One city, two sites

From International Gothic to present day

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A half-Baroque church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The disastrous earthquake

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A symbol for the town

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The theatre of taste

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giovanni Battista