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.

The theatre of taste

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The two churches

A miniature city

A symbol for the town

The internal colours

A small room with a golden entrance

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A half-Baroque church

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Discovering the mother church

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Two illustrious patron saints

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

New roads for Catania

Feasting in Palazzolo

A square as the heart of the city

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

An eagle-shaped city

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

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

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A majestic and luminous church

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Wonderful quick decorations

A new site for a new church

One city, two sites

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A new site for a new city

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A talking palace

The chocolate of Modica

The colours of the cathedral

The Burgos crucifix

A hall for the feasts

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Feast days

Prominent façade

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

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

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

The Staircase of Angels

The disastrous earthquake

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A long reconstruction

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

One city, three sites

Norman apses

The wall comes to life

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A city in colour

Some prestigious works

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The interior and its masterpieces

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Between white and black

The church of Carmine

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A colourful floor

A museum to save a tradition

A feast only for Scicli

The Baroque town by the sea

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Searching for colour

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A triumph of colour

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Some masterpieces

From International Gothic to present day

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Many owners, one palace