Catania

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Giardino dei Novizi (Garden of Novices) is one of the most fascinating places in the monastery.
Over the centuries it has suffered a great deal of damage and experienced various transformations. In 1977 work began to restore the monastery, supervised by architect Giancarlo De Carlo .
The Garden of Novices, as the name suggests, was reserved for those beginning their spiritual journey to become part of the religious order, where they would observe and learn the Benedictine way of life.
The garden was built atop the accumulation of lava after the 1669 eruption; in the 20th century, it was destroyed to make room for a gymnasium that did not last long. The architect  De Carlo recovered the old garden, restored the area, added a spiral staircase and fountain and turned it into a green space open to all.
foto giardino novizi foto dettagli piante giardino

From International Gothic to present day

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

A talking palace

Many owners, one palace

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A symbol for the town

A feast only for Scicli

One city, three sites

A colourful floor

Two illustrious patron saints

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

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

The Staircase of Angels

Some prestigious works

The two churches

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Baroque town by the sea

A square as the heart of the city

Wonderful quick decorations

A half-Baroque church

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A museum to save a tradition

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

A miniature city

Feast days

Prominent façade

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A new site for a new city

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Searching for colour

The church of Carmine

The disastrous earthquake

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

A new site for a new church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The chocolate of Modica

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

An eagle-shaped city

The Maiolica of the staircase

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The wall comes to life

Between white and black

A majestic and luminous church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The city of museums

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The theatre of taste

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

New roads for Catania

One city, two sites

The Burgos crucifix

Discovering the mother church

A city in colour

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

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

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

The internal colours

A small room with a golden entrance

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A long reconstruction

The colours of the cathedral

The interior and its masterpieces

Norman apses

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Some masterpieces

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?