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 kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

New roads for Catania

Searching for colour

A hall for the feasts

Wonderful quick decorations

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The two churches

A colourful floor

Many owners, one palace

Some prestigious works

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The city of museums

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

One city, two sites

Norman apses

A museum to save a tradition

The Maiolica of the staircase

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A city in colour

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A new site for a new city

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The interior and its masterpieces

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Between white and black

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

A symbol for the town

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The disastrous earthquake

A square as the heart of the city

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Baroque town by the sea

The colours of the cathedral

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

The church of Carmine

Feast days

Discovering the mother church

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Two illustrious patron saints

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Prominent façade

A feast only for Scicli

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A half-Baroque church

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

A talking palace

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The chocolate of Modica

The Burgos crucifix

A prominent church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The wall comes to life

A small room with a golden entrance

A long reconstruction

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A triumph of colour

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A miniature city

The Staircase of Angels

Some masterpieces

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

One city, three sites

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

The internal colours

From International Gothic to present day

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

The theatre of taste

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Connections with other UNESCO sites

An eagle-shaped city

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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