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.

Some prestigious works

The wall comes to life

Searching for colour

The Baroque town by the sea

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The theatre of taste

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Between white and black

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

Many owners, one palace

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Discovering the mother church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new site for a new church

Feast days

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The church of Carmine

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

Some masterpieces

New roads for Catania

A symbol for the town

A long reconstruction

Two illustrious patron saints

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A small room with a golden entrance

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The internal colours

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A square as the heart of the city

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The disastrous earthquake

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

A feast only for Scicli

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

The interior and its masterpieces

Norman apses

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A new site for a new city

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A miniature city

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A half-Baroque church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The city of museums

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A colourful floor

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

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

A museum to save a tradition

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A majestic and luminous church

The Maiolica of the staircase

The Staircase of Angels

The chocolate of Modica

A hall for the feasts

One city, two sites

The colours of the cathedral

A triumph of colour

One city, three sites

An eagle-shaped city

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

From International Gothic to present day

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

A prominent church

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A talking palace

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A city in colour