Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

sight
Brightness and light

Colour, light and more colour!
The vault is a riot of colour, capable of making the figures and shapes stand out, and leaving visitors gazing upwards.
As for the altar, it attracts attention thanks to the brilliance and shine of gold, silver and the precious sparkling stones used to decorate it.
The church is a treasure trove of precious jewels.

hearing
A sound to accompany prayer

It’s 1790 and you’re inside the church of St. Benedict, attending one of the services… You can hear something… what is it?
The organ!
With a sound alternating between gentle and low, it accompanies prayer as impressed worshippers celebrate Holy Mass.
Then the bells announce the end of the service.
Their chimes vibrate in the atmosphere and resonate along Via dei Crociferi.

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A triumph of colour

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

A small room with a golden entrance

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

The church of Carmine

One city, two sites

Discovering the mother church

The Baroque town by the sea

The disastrous earthquake

Searching for colour

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Feast days

A half-Baroque church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The city of museums

A feast only for Scicli

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

The two churches

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The theatre of taste

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Some masterpieces

The wall comes to life

A new site for a new church

Some prestigious works

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Wonderful quick decorations

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

New roads for Catania

A hall for the feasts

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The interior and its masterpieces

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A city in colour

A colourful floor

A square as the heart of the city

From International Gothic to present day

A majestic and luminous church

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The colours of the cathedral

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Between white and black

A new site for a new city

The Burgos crucifix

An eagle-shaped city

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

The Staircase of Angels

A museum to save a tradition

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A long reconstruction

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

A miniature city

A talking palace

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Two illustrious patron saints

Prominent façade

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

One city, three sites

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The internal colours

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Norman apses

A symbol for the town

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town