Catania

The theatre of taste

a piscariaA few metres from the cathedral, just past Porta Uzeda, is the fish market, “a piscaria”. It has been home to one of Catania’s historical markets since the early 19th century.
Modest in size, it is now a destination for fish connoisseurs and tourists.
Amidst the colours of red mullet and black mussel shells, the vendors’ shouts mingle with the smell.
Though rather strong and pungent, it’s definitely authentic and encourages visitors to take some fish home. Spices can also be found, to accompany the market purchases. Packaged in unidentified plastic bags, they tell a story of cultural influences steeped in past and present that reveal and release aromas of ancient origin. Observing in this way brings you closer to the beauty of these places.
The market of Catania is a theatre of taste, animated by the traders’ shouts, where you can revel in an atmosphere where time seems to stand still.

Some masterpieces

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

A miniature city

A talking palace

Feast days

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The two churches

A symbol for the town

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

A half-Baroque church

A museum to save a tradition

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A hall for the feasts

The wall comes to life

Many owners, one palace

A colourful floor

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Feasting in Palazzolo

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Searching for colour

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

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A small room with a golden entrance

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Staircase of Angels

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

One city, two sites

A new site for a new city

Discovering the mother church

A majestic and luminous church

New roads for Catania

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

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

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

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

The Burgos crucifix

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Between white and black

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The disastrous earthquake

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

The internal colours

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A city in colour

The church of Carmine

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Norman apses

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new site for a new church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The interior and its masterpieces

One city, three sites

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

A long reconstruction

The chocolate of Modica

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A square as the heart of the city

A prominent church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Two illustrious patron saints

The Baroque town by the sea

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Prominent façade

The theatre of taste

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

An eagle-shaped city

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The colours of the cathedral

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Wonderful quick decorations

From International Gothic to present day

The Maiolica of the staircase

A feast only for Scicli