Caltagirone

A city in colour

In Caltagirone, traditional pottery production is linked to a thousand-year-old history dating back to ancient times.
According to the Italian archaeologist Paolo Orsi the production of maiolica preceded the arrival of the Arabs, but we know for sure that their arrival in the 9th century increased production, thanks to the introduction of a new technique – glazing – which made the pottery waterproof and more resistant.
A few centuries later, during the Spanish rule of Alfonso of Aragon, pottery trade had greatly developed and allowed artisans to sell their ceramics all over the island.
Unfortunately, the earthquake of 1693 interrupted the potters’ activity and destroyed many of the floors made with the maiolica of Caltagirone.
Today some of the fragments are preserved in the Museum of Ceramics.
foto facciata museo  dei vasi fuori il museo
After the earthquake, decorative motifs were replaced in order to make trade flourish again. In the 19th century, however, with the introduction of cement, the production of maiolica stopped.
The potters’ centuries-old activity ended when the last master potters disappeared in the 1930s.
In 1918 Don Luigi Sturzo founded the Istituto d’Arte della Ceramica (Institute of Ceramic Art) and saved a tradition that seemed destined to be lost. In 1965 the Museum of Ceramics was inaugurated, a safe place that preserved and protected a priceless cultural heritage.
foto ceramiche in ordine di descrizione per periodo

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The disastrous earthquake

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Discovering the mother church

The Maiolica of the staircase

Searching for colour

A half-Baroque church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A new site for a new church

Some masterpieces

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

Some prestigious works

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The two churches

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

One city, three sites

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A hall for the feasts

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

A small room with a golden entrance

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Burgos crucifix

A majestic and luminous church

The theatre of taste

A prominent church

The colours of the cathedral

The city of museums

Prominent façade

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

A triumph of colour

From International Gothic to present day

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The wall comes to life

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Norman apses

A city in colour

Wonderful quick decorations

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A feast only for Scicli

A miniature city

The Staircase of Angels

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

Two illustrious patron saints

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The interior and its masterpieces

A talking palace

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

New roads for Catania

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A colourful floor

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A symbol for the town

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The internal colours

The church of Carmine

An eagle-shaped city

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A square as the heart of the city

Between white and black

A new site for a new city

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

The chocolate of Modica

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A long reconstruction

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

One city, two sites

A museum to save a tradition

Feast days

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The Baroque town by the sea