Catania

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The church of San Benedetto (St. Benedict) is part of a larger complex including the monastery and a small church where the MACS (Museo Arte Contemporanea Sicilia, Sicily Contemporary Art Museum) is now located.foto del prospetto
It was also part of the reorganisation after the earthquake in 1693.
In fact, the Benedictine monastery originally had only one church, the second (home to the museum) was part of the old convent of Santa Maddalena (St. Magdalene), which were connected by an arch in 1704. The church was rebuilt in a few years (1704-1713) and dedicated to St. Benedict of Nursia .
foto arco d’unione foto monastero da via crociferi inquadrando l’arco d’unione
The façade of the church on Via dei Crociferi is tall and majestic and separated from the street by a wrought iron gate. The gate is divided horizontally into three levels: in the first there is the access portal; in the second there is a louvre window with a balcony; and the same layout is also repeated on the final level which completes the façade with a triangular structure.
For the decoration some architectural elements were used creatively; one example includes the structures on the first level that divide the façade vertically and are formed by a half column, on which a pilaster strip then another half column are placed.
foto gradinata dal basso verso l'alto foto dettaglio statue angeli
The entrance is up a spectacular staircase; the church has a single nave nave and is illuminated by the six large windows on the vault and the chandeliers resting on the trabeation .
The polychrome marble floor is the only remnant of the 17th-century church and was recovered from the ruins of the earthquake.

A miniature city

A half-Baroque church

A hall for the feasts

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The chocolate of Modica

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The two churches

The Staircase of Angels

Between white and black

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The interior and its masterpieces

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

Many owners, one palace

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

The wall comes to life

Some masterpieces

A feast only for Scicli

A new site for a new city

The Maiolica of the staircase

One city, two sites

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

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

The Burgos crucifix

The colours of the cathedral

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Discovering the mother church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A talking palace

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

A small room with a golden entrance

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

Some prestigious works

The disastrous earthquake

A long reconstruction

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A colourful floor

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A prominent church

A city in colour

St. Sebastian, so much work!

From International Gothic to present day

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The internal colours

Searching for colour

The Baroque town by the sea

An eagle-shaped city

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A square as the heart of the city

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A museum to save a tradition

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

One city, three sites

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The theatre of taste

Wonderful quick decorations

Two illustrious patron saints

A symbol for the town

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Norman apses

The church of Carmine

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A triumph of colour

A new site for a new church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Feast days

Feasting in Palazzolo

The city of museums

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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