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.

A colourful floor

The church of Carmine

A half-Baroque church

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

A square as the heart of the city

A triumph of colour

The interior and its masterpieces

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A new site for a new church

The wall comes to life

The city of museums

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Burgos crucifix

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The colours of the cathedral

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A symbol for the town

Wonderful quick decorations

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Some masterpieces

A feast only for Scicli

Some prestigious works

Searching for colour

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Many owners, one palace

Feasting in Palazzolo

Norman apses

A long reconstruction

A city in colour

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Discovering the mother church

A prominent church

One city, two sites

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

The internal colours

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A new site for a new city

From International Gothic to present day

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

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Feast days

The Maiolica of the staircase

New roads for Catania

An eagle-shaped city

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The Baroque town by the sea

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

One city, three sites

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

A hall for the feasts

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A miniature city

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The two churches

The disastrous earthquake

A museum to save a tradition

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Prominent façade

A small room with a golden entrance

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

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

The chocolate of Modica

Between white and black

The theatre of taste

A talking palace

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