Catania

The internal colours

The church has a Greek cross plan. As you enter, you move from a small room to a large circular space where white is used extensively and gives the room an almost blinding brightness.
The gleam of white is joined by the yellow Castronovo marble altars, located in four large niches , where four wonderful statues stand.
foto ingresso verso altare maggioreThese were created by Giovanni Battista Marino in marble stucco . As per traditional Baroque sculpture, the clothing of the four characters moves and seems caught in a continuous breeze.
The statues depict St. Euplius, St. Benedict, St. Joseph and the Child, and the Immaculate Conception. Ignazio Carnazza’s work, the Crocefissione (Crucifixion), is another clear example of Baroque art.
altare minore 2 altare minore 1
In fact, the use of colour is a typical element from the period.
The wooden crucifix rests on a yellow marble background from which a red marble cloth descends. Though made of a hard material, the cloth seems soft. Red was not chosen by chance; the first stone given by God to humans to build the new Jerusalem was in fact red.
The work was commissioned by the abbess Giuseppa Maria Scammacca. The flooring completes the interior. The splendid floor was created by Ignazio Marino’s workshop using one of his designs. Black and white marble covers the entire surface with an abstract design that points towards the centre of the church.
crocifisso carnazza

The Burgos crucifix

The Baroque town by the sea

The Staircase of Angels

Some prestigious works

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 Giuliano ai Crociferi

A new site for a new city

Norman apses

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

From International Gothic to present day

New roads for Catania

Feast days

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A symbol for the town

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

One city, two sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Some masterpieces

The Maiolica of the staircase

A talking palace

A museum to save a tradition

The theatre of taste

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

The disastrous earthquake

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

A majestic and luminous church

Searching for colour

A miniature city

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Prominent façade

A feast only for Scicli

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

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

A half-Baroque church

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A triumph of colour

The church of Carmine

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A long reconstruction

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

One city, three sites

Limestone, the colour of harmony

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

Discovering the mother church

A new site for a new church

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Two illustrious patron saints

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The two churches

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

Many owners, one palace

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The city of museums

A colourful floor

A prominent church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Between white and black

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

An eagle-shaped city

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A square as the heart of the city

A hall for the feasts

Modica, a city with ancient origins

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

The internal colours

A city in colour

The wall comes to life

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The chocolate of Modica