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 miniature city

Discovering the mother church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A new site for a new church

Searching for colour

The city of museums

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Some masterpieces

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

The two churches

A talking palace

An eagle-shaped city

A city in colour

A majestic and luminous church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Some prestigious works

The church of Carmine

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

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

Prominent façade

The Maiolica of the staircase

The disastrous earthquake

The chocolate of Modica

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A long reconstruction

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Many owners, one palace

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

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Two illustrious patron saints

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The internal colours

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

A feast only for Scicli

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A symbol for the town

Between white and black

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

The Baroque town by the sea

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A colourful floor

The Staircase of Angels

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The interior and its masterpieces

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A square as the heart of the city

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A prominent church

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

One city, three sites

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

From International Gothic to present day

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The theatre of taste

Feast days

A hall for the feasts

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The wall comes to life

Wonderful quick decorations

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

One city, two sites

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A triumph of colour

New roads for Catania

A new site for a new city

Norman apses

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

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara