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.

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A long reconstruction

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

One city, three sites

Many owners, one palace

One city, two sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

New roads for Catania

The wall comes to life

The Maiolica of the staircase

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A talking palace

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The colours of the cathedral

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A small room with a golden entrance

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A feast only for Scicli

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Some prestigious works

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A miniature city

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A city in colour

Discovering the mother church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Prominent façade

The chocolate of Modica

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

The disastrous earthquake

Wonderful quick decorations

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A triumph of colour

The church of Carmine

A new site for a new city

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Feast days

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The internal colours

A symbol for the town

An eagle-shaped city

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

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

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

Two illustrious patron saints

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A half-Baroque church

A new site for a new church

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Baroque town by the sea

Searching for colour

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A prominent church

A hall for the feasts

A colourful floor

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The two churches

Between white and black

The Burgos crucifix

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

From International Gothic to present day

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A museum to save a tradition

The city of museums

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Norman apses

Some masterpieces

A square as the heart of the city

The Staircase of Angels

The theatre of taste