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

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

The colours of the cathedral

The Maiolica of the staircase

One city, two sites

A half-Baroque church

A symbol for the town

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

An eagle-shaped city

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

Many owners, one palace

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

One city, three sites

A square as the heart of the city

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Norman apses

The internal colours

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Wonderful quick decorations

The chocolate of Modica

From International Gothic to present day

A colourful floor

A miniature city

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A city in colour

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

Feast days

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Prominent façade

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A museum to save a tradition

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The wall comes to life

A prominent church

Some prestigious works

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

Some masterpieces

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

A talking palace

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Discovering the mother church

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The theatre of taste

The church of Carmine

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Searching for colour

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The interior and its masterpieces

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Between white and black

A new site for a new city

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

The two churches

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A feast only for Scicli

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A new site for a new church

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The disastrous earthquake

The Burgos crucifix

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Baroque town by the sea

Two illustrious patron saints

A majestic and luminous church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A triumph of colour

Feasting in Palazzolo

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

New roads for Catania

The city of museums

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A long reconstruction

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)