Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

sight
Brightness and light

Colour, light and more colour!
The vault is a riot of colour, capable of making the figures and shapes stand out, and leaving visitors gazing upwards.
As for the altar, it attracts attention thanks to the brilliance and shine of gold, silver and the precious sparkling stones used to decorate it.
The church is a treasure trove of precious jewels.

hearing
A sound to accompany prayer

It’s 1790 and you’re inside the church of St. Benedict, attending one of the services… You can hear something… what is it?
The organ!
With a sound alternating between gentle and low, it accompanies prayer as impressed worshippers celebrate Holy Mass.
Then the bells announce the end of the service.
Their chimes vibrate in the atmosphere and resonate along Via dei Crociferi.

A prominent church

A half-Baroque church

The church of Carmine

Between white and black

A feast only for Scicli

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

From International Gothic to present day

The wall comes to life

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A museum to save a tradition

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Norman apses

The chocolate of Modica

A colourful floor

The Baroque town by the sea

A new site for a new church

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Prominent façade

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The two churches

A new site for a new city

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

One city, two sites

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A small room with a golden entrance

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

A city in colour

Two illustrious patron saints

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

Many owners, one palace

The Staircase of Angels

The Burgos crucifix

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Some masterpieces

Searching for colour

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A majestic and luminous church

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The colours of the cathedral

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

One city, three sites

The interior and its masterpieces

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A triumph of colour

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A talking palace

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A miniature city

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

A long reconstruction

The city of museums

A symbol for the town

New roads for Catania

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

An eagle-shaped city

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

Discovering the mother church

Feasting in Palazzolo

Feast days

Wonderful quick decorations

The theatre of taste

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The internal colours

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A hall for the feasts

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras