Militello in Val di Catania

Militello: The story of an enlightened fiefdom

The town of Militello in Val di Catania reached the height of its growth in the 17th century, and is one of the centres rebuilt on new sites following the great earthquake of 1693.
In fact, in these years the enlightened Prince Francesco Branciforte designed the new urban layout, already thinking about a possible expansion of the town. Located in the northern extremity of the Hyblaean Mountains, it was rebuilt further upstream, not far from the former site, according to a grid layout.
Militello drone
piazza Vittorio Emanuele inquadrando chiesa san NicolòThe name Militellus, or Militum Tellus, land of soldiers, is said to come from the city’s Roman origins, though nothing has been proven yet. The first urban centre dates back to the Byzantine era, near the valley of the river Lèmbasi, to the south of the current township. This is evidenced by the transformation of the necropolises into homes and places of Christian worship. The main characteristic of Militello is, however, its strong connotation of a fortified centre. As a matter of fact, it remained a fiefdom until the end of the 18th century following the rule of the Barresi and Branciforte lords. The two main churches, those of Santa Maria della Stella (St. Mary of the Star) and San Nicolò (St. Nicholas), were razed to the ground by the earthquake and were rebuilt, in the upper part of the town, in the Baroque style of the Val di Noto.

The beginning of an authentic Baroque conception

The Church of St. Benedict

The works in the church

The senses tell the Church of San Domenico

The interiors: diffused light and Byzantine relics

The interior of the church: space and colour

Fountain of the Nymph Zizza: public water in the town

The smallest Greek theatre in the world

The art of maiolica

From the end of the world to rebirth from the rubble

The Church of St. Mary of the Mountain

The city palace

The church and the college

The triumph of Baroque: expansion of spaces

Scenography and devotion for St. Agatha

The Monastery of the Benedictine nuns

The Infiorata of Noto, a modern tradition

The Church of Madonna della Stella

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Palazzo dei due mori

Altars, saints and sculptural works

Barresi-Branciforte: the lords of the fiefdom and the modernisation of the town

The casket of austerity under the great dome

Views denied, views conquered: the power of the devout Benedictines

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

The neo-Gothic seminary chapel: symbols, light and space

The Antonino Uccello Birthplace Museum

The senses tell of Palazzo della Cancelleria

Baroque and the loss of balance in the 16th century

The Church of St. Julian on Via dei Crociferi

Unusual iconographies: the Burgos crucifix

The eagle-shaped city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A casket of precious works

The Monte delle Prestanze in the new city layout

City and nature

The church and the monastery

Baroque creativity: recurring themes

The two churches

Luminous sacred spaces

The Staircase of Angels

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

The senses tell the story of the Sanctuary Church of Santa Maria della Stella

The interior and works of art

A new site for the church of San Giorgio

Akrai and Syracuse: an unbreakable bond

The expansion of space and changing reality

Palazzo Trigona di Canicarao

The Duomo di San Giorgio (Cathedral of St. George)

One city, three sites

The senses tell the Cathedral of San Giorgio

The Franciscan convent

The Badia di Sant’Agata (St. Agatha’s Abbey)

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Carlo and the former Jesuit college

The senses tell of the Cathedral of San Pietro

The Madonna dei Conadomini and the art of devotion

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Expansion, spatiality and light in the church of San Domenico

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

San Domenico and Gagliardi’s work

Palazzo Zacco, a balance between sobriety and decoration

Majestic exteriors, grandiose interiors

Scenography, lights and colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the Cathedral of San Giorgio

The city of Modica, a balance between nature and urbanism

Art in the cathedral

Geometry and wonder in civic architecture in the Baroque of the Val di Noto

The senses tell about Palazzo Beneventano

The senses tell about Palazzo Ducezio

A stone garden

Verticality and dynamism of the façade of the Church of San Carlo

Virtuosity, decorations and altars

The new roads of the city

Palazzo della Cancelleria: from former stable to the Nicastro family

A compromise between Neoclassicism and Baroque

The senses tell about Palazzo Trigona

The senses tell the Church of San Michele

Rebirth and urban planning of the city of Noto

A unifying project for the city of Catania

Piazza Duomo, the elephant fountain, the heart of the city

The Benedictines’ library

Palazzo Trigona: a building with a complex shape

Madonna of the Militia: a singular warrior virgin

Religious architecture

A story of rebirth

Reconstruction after the earthquake

The palace, the town, the church

The illusion of light and the decorative splendour

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Paolo

The senses tell the Benedictine Monastery and the Church of San Nicolò l’Arena

The city within the city

The Church of St. John the Evangelist

A heritage of votive works

The senses tell about Palazzo Zacco

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The church of San Nicolò l’Arena: the majesty of an unfinished beauty

Scicli, the city of Baroque scenery

The Church of St. Francis

The articulated interior spaces

St. Agatha and the candelore

The dynamics of the Church of San Michele

Militello: The story of an enlightened fiefdom

The Church of St. Paul

The freedom of worship and the Catholic Church’s role in the diffusion of Baroque

Expanded spaces, stucco and colourful lights