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 Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A colourful floor

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The two churches

Discovering the mother church

From International Gothic to present day

A half-Baroque church

A prominent church

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The disastrous earthquake

A triumph of colour

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Burgos crucifix

Some prestigious works

Searching for colour

Norman apses

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A museum to save a tradition

A talking palace

Two illustrious patron saints

An eagle-shaped city

The chocolate of Modica

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Many owners, one palace

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

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

A square as the heart of the city

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A long reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The interior and its masterpieces

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A feast only for Scicli

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

New roads for Catania

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

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

Prominent façade

Feasting in Palazzolo

A new site for a new city

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Baroque town by the sea

The church of Carmine

The wall comes to life

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Staircase of Angels

One city, two sites

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

One city, three sites

Between white and black

The colours of the cathedral

A miniature city

A city in colour

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A new site for a new church

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A small room with a golden entrance

The theatre of taste

A hall for the feasts

Feast days

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The internal colours

A majestic and luminous church

Some masterpieces

The Maiolica of the staircase

A symbol for the town

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours