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.

Some prestigious works

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Feasting in Palazzolo

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Maiolica of the staircase

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The theatre of taste

A long reconstruction

A city in colour

A small room with a golden entrance

Between white and black

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A talking palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Discovering the mother church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

A square as the heart of the city

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

From International Gothic to present day

The wall comes to life

A colourful floor

One city, three sites

The Baroque town by the sea

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Searching for colour

Many owners, one palace

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The church of Carmine

A miniature city

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

Wonderful quick decorations

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Two illustrious patron saints

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A symbol for the town

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Feast days

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Some masterpieces

The internal colours

The two churches

Norman apses

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A triumph of colour

The Burgos crucifix

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

New roads for Catania

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A prominent church

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

A half-Baroque church

A new site for a new city

A museum to save a tradition

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new site for a new church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Staircase of Angels

One city, two sites

A majestic and luminous church

The interior and its masterpieces

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

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

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Prominent façade

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

An eagle-shaped city

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

The colours of the cathedral

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A hall for the feasts

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The chocolate of Modica

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

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A feast only for Scicli