Militello in Val di Catania

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The town of Militello in Val di Catania, once called Militello in Val di Noto, is one of the centres rebuilt on a new site following the great earthquake of 1693.
Located in the northern part of the Hyblaean Mountains, it was rebuilt in a grid layout further upstream but still nearby the former site.foto militello droneThe name Militellus, or Militum Tellus, land of soldiers, is said to be of Roman origin like the town, though no proof of this has yet been found. Another fascinating theory links the name’s origin to the honey-coloured local stone, from which “Mellis Tellus”, or land of honey, would derive.
The first settlement is thought to date back to the Byzantine era near the valley of the river Lèmbasi, south of the current town. This is shown by the transformation of the necropolises into homes and places of Christian worship.
Militello was also a fortified centre and remained a fiefdom until the 18th century, following the rule of the Barresi and Branciforte lords. The town reached maximum expansion in the 17th century, before the great earthquake of 1693. In fact, the enlightened Prince Francesco Branciforte designed a new road layout and came up with a possible way to expand the town without completely changing site.
The two main churches, Santa Maria della Stella (St. Mary of the Star) and San Nicolò (St. Nicholas), were rebuilt in the upper part of the town in late Baroque style, following the destruction of the earthquake.

A half-Baroque church

The internal colours

The wall comes to life

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A talking palace

A city in colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Many owners, one palace

The church of Carmine

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Norman apses

Some masterpieces

Prominent façade

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Searching for colour

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A colourful floor

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Feasting in Palazzolo

A small room with a golden entrance

The disastrous earthquake

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A new site for a new church

A long reconstruction

The Baroque town by the sea

New roads for Catania

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The colours of the cathedral

The interior and its masterpieces

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

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

The city of museums

The Burgos crucifix

A new site for a new city

Between white and black

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

The theatre of taste

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

One city, two sites

A triumph of colour

A prominent church

From International Gothic to present day

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A square as the heart of the city

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

One city, three sites

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Feast days

The chocolate of Modica

A miniature city

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

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Discovering the mother church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A hall for the feasts

Modica, a city with ancient origins

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A feast only for Scicli

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Some prestigious works

Two illustrious patron saints

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A majestic and luminous church

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The two churches

Wonderful quick decorations

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

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

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Maiolica of the staircase