Caltagirone

A museum to save a tradition

In 1965, the Museum of Ceramics was founded in order to save a centuries-old tradition. Located on one of the main streets, Via Roma, the location was refurbished before the inauguration.
It has a special entrance, a 19th-century portico that rests on a tall raised structure accessed by a series of staircases. The maiolica decorations make it extra special, embellishing and adding colour to the façade.
The museum contains pottery from the Greek age until the beginning of the 20th century, including collections of Arab, Norman, Suevian and Aragonese artefacts.

foto ceramiche in ordine di descrizione per periodo

foto ceramiche in ordine di descrizione per periodo foto ceramiche in ordine di descrizione per periodo
The pottery is exhibited in four large rooms, where there are around 2500 artefacts and work from the ancient, medieval, post-medieval and modern worlds. The collections mostly come from the Civic Museum of Caltagirone and the “ Luigi Sturzo “, State Institute of Art for Ceramics, but also from other Sicilian museums such as the Russo-Perez collection or from private collectors including Professor Antonino Ragona.

Searching for colour

A prominent church

A feast only for Scicli

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The wall comes to life

The disastrous earthquake

Feast days

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Norman apses

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

A miniature city

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A talking palace

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

The city of museums

The church of Carmine

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

Some masterpieces

A new site for a new city

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A triumph of colour

One city, three sites

The Staircase of Angels

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

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

A city in colour

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Many owners, one palace

Connections with other UNESCO sites

From International Gothic to present day

The two churches

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Wonderful quick decorations

The Burgos crucifix

An eagle-shaped city

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new site for a new church

The Baroque town by the sea

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The theatre of taste

A colourful floor

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

A small room with a golden entrance

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Prominent façade

Between white and black

One city, two sites

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The colours of the cathedral

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A majestic and luminous church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

New roads for Catania

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Some prestigious works

Two illustrious patron saints

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Maiolica of the staircase

A square as the heart of the city

A long reconstruction

The chocolate of Modica

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

A hall for the feasts

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The internal colours

Discovering the mother church

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The interior and its masterpieces

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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