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.

Wonderful quick decorations

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

The interior and its masterpieces

One city, two sites

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Norman apses

The Baroque town by the sea

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The wall comes to life

A talking palace

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A feast only for Scicli

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

The Staircase of Angels

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The disastrous earthquake

Prominent façade

A city in colour

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A new site for a new city

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

A half-Baroque church

The colours of the cathedral

Limestone, the colour of harmony

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Discovering the mother church

A prominent church

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

A majestic and luminous church

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

A hall for the feasts

Feast days

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A museum to save a tradition

A square as the heart of the city

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A triumph of colour

Some prestigious works

Between white and black

The two churches

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

From International Gothic to present day

The Burgos crucifix

The church of Carmine

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The internal colours

One city, three sites

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

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

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

The theatre of taste

The city of museums

Searching for colour

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

New roads for Catania

The Maiolica of the staircase

A new site for a new church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A symbol for the town

Some masterpieces

An eagle-shaped city

A colourful floor

Feasting in Palazzolo

A miniature city

A long reconstruction

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation