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.

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

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A miniature city

A new site for a new church

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Discovering the mother church

The Baroque town by the sea

An eagle-shaped city

Wonderful quick decorations

The wall comes to life

A half-Baroque church

Some masterpieces

Prominent façade

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

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

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

A symbol for the town

Norman apses

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A hall for the feasts

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The interior and its masterpieces

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

One city, two sites

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A feast only for Scicli

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

A triumph of colour

Feast days

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Burgos crucifix

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The theatre of taste

A new site for a new city

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The internal colours

A talking palace

The chocolate of Modica

The Staircase of Angels

A long reconstruction

The disastrous earthquake

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

New roads for Catania

A museum to save a tradition

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Maiolica of the staircase

The church of Carmine

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Many owners, one palace

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Between white and black

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

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Two illustrious patron saints

From International Gothic to present day

The two churches

A majestic and luminous church

The colours of the cathedral

The city of museums

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A city in colour

Searching for colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A colourful floor

A prominent church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

One city, three sites

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Some prestigious works