Catania

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

sight
The façade with a play on colour

foto bicromiaOf all the wonders of Piazza Duomo, the cathedral certainly does not go unnoticed.
Thanks to a play on colour between the white limestone and grey lava stone, the façade figures prominently in the square.
The two colours alternate with one another to create a perfect harmony that adds liveliness to the façade.
The colours are not always the same; at different times of the day they shine differently depending on the light.

touch
Coarse to smooth, hot to cold

Look but don’t touch! How many times have you heard this said in museums or churches?
But if you could touch each material that made up the church you would notice how different they are; starting with the pillars that separate the central nave from the lateral naves, the former in lava stone and the latter in white limestone.
On a hot summer day, the outside walls will be much warmer than those inside, which will be undoubtedly cold.

hearing
Music in the Cathedral

foto dell'organo l'interno della cattedraleThe church has an unbreakable bond with music.
The cathedral of St. Agatha is not only home to a magnificent organ, now located above the entrance, but the tomb of the musician Vincenzo Bellini (1801-1835).
Though he died very young, he was recognised as one of the greatest composers of his time.
The artist’s tomb was created in 1876 by Giovanni Battista Tassara and is located next to one of the pillars of the right nave.
Bellini was initially buried in Paris at the Père Lachaise Cemetery.

taste
A dessert for a saint

During the feast dedicated to St. Agatha, the “Minne di Sant’Agata”, a dessert made in her honour, are another must.
The shape is unambiguously reminiscent of a woman’s breast, in memory of the terrible martyrdom suffered by the saint.
The dessert consists of a shortcrust pastry shell covered with white icing with a candied cherry on top; the filling is made with sweetened sheep’s milk ricotta, candied fruit and dark chocolate. Yum! Not to be missed if you happen to be in Catania during the feast. foto dei dolci delle minne di Sant'Agata

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new site for a new city

The city of museums

A majestic and luminous church

A miniature city

Feast days

From International Gothic to present day

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A feast only for Scicli

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A long reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Some prestigious works

A museum to save a tradition

A triumph of colour

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

The theatre of taste

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The wall comes to life

The colours of the cathedral

One city, three sites

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A square as the heart of the city

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A colourful floor

Many owners, one palace

New roads for Catania

The Staircase of Angels

A small room with a golden entrance

A talking palace

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Between white and black

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Baroque town by the sea

The Maiolica of the staircase

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The church of Carmine

Searching for colour

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

A new site for a new church

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

Two illustrious patron saints

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Burgos crucifix

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

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Norman apses

A hall for the feasts

The internal colours

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

Some masterpieces

Discovering the mother church

One city, two sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Prominent façade

The chocolate of Modica

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

A symbol for the town

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

The two churches

Wonderful quick decorations

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A half-Baroque church

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The interior and its masterpieces

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A city in colour

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

A prominent church

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church