Catania

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

One of the most evocative rooms of the monastery is the kitchen.
foto cucina della portaLike the refectory, antirefectory, library and museum, the space dedicated to preparing food was designed by Giovan Battista Vaccarini and its construction began in 1739.
foto cucina dei benedettiniThe architect had to take into account the rules of monastic architecture, which meant separating the kitchen from the other rooms. This way, if there was a fire, it would not spread to the other rooms.
Similarly, the passageways leading to the refectory as well as being narrow were equipped with multiple barriers.
The kitchen underwent various changes over the years, but the structure has remained the same with the hearths in the centre, a huge brazier placed in an octagonal “chamber”.
The maiolica decorations that enrich the structure create splendid orange and blue squares with a white background of abstract motifs. The floor is just as surprising. Also made with colourful maiolica tiles, it extends across the whole room. However, the floor is not simple or uniform; it is divided into eight parts with two different alternating decorations.
The first is a white floor with fine blue, black and yellow geometric decorations that cover the smaller portions; the other is larger and more colourful, where yellow and green dominate the blue, orange and white decoration. foto Dettaglio maioliche

A feast only for Scicli

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

One city, two sites

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

The two churches

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

Searching for colour

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The chocolate of Modica

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A majestic and luminous church

A symbol for the town

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

A museum to save a tradition

A small room with a golden entrance

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Maiolica of the staircase

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Staircase of Angels

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

The city of museums

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A prominent church

Two illustrious patron saints

The internal colours

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

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A square as the heart of the city

A miniature city

A half-Baroque church

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

An eagle-shaped city

Feast days

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A long reconstruction

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Many owners, one palace

The church of Carmine

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new site for a new church

A hall for the feasts

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A triumph of colour

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

One city, three sites

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Discovering the mother church

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The colours of the cathedral

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Some prestigious works

The Burgos crucifix

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A new site for a new city

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Between white and black

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Feasting in Palazzolo

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The theatre of taste

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

A talking palace

From International Gothic to present day

Norman apses

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The wall comes to life

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Prominent façade

A city in colour

A colourful floor

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Wonderful quick decorations

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Some masterpieces

A Nobel Prize in Modica