Catania

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

One of the most evocative rooms of the monastery is the kitchen.
foto cucina della portaLike the refectory, antirefectory, library and museum, the space dedicated to preparing food was designed by Giovan Battista Vaccarini and its construction began in 1739.
foto cucina dei benedettiniThe architect had to take into account the rules of monastic architecture, which meant separating the kitchen from the other rooms. This way, if there was a fire, it would not spread to the other rooms.
Similarly, the passageways leading to the refectory as well as being narrow were equipped with multiple barriers.
The kitchen underwent various changes over the years, but the structure has remained the same with the hearths in the centre, a huge brazier placed in an octagonal “chamber”.
The maiolica decorations that enrich the structure create splendid orange and blue squares with a white background of abstract motifs. The floor is just as surprising. Also made with colourful maiolica tiles, it extends across the whole room. However, the floor is not simple or uniform; it is divided into eight parts with two different alternating decorations.
The first is a white floor with fine blue, black and yellow geometric decorations that cover the smaller portions; the other is larger and more colourful, where yellow and green dominate the blue, orange and white decoration. foto Dettaglio maioliche

A new site for a new church

The Staircase of Angels

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A prominent church

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The chocolate of Modica

The wall comes to life

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

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Norman apses

Feasting in Palazzolo

The theatre of taste

One city, three sites

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The interior and its masterpieces

A symbol for the town

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

The internal colours

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

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

Many owners, one palace

A half-Baroque church

The colours of the cathedral

Some masterpieces

Some prestigious works

The two churches

A majestic and luminous church

Discovering the mother church

From International Gothic to present day

A talking palace

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A small room with a golden entrance

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

An eagle-shaped city

The Maiolica of the staircase

Two illustrious patron saints

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

A long reconstruction

The city of museums

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

One city, two sites

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A new site for a new city

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A city in colour

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The disastrous earthquake

A colourful floor

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Between white and black

Searching for colour

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The church of Carmine

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The Baroque town by the sea

A square as the heart of the city

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A miniature city

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A feast only for Scicli

Feast days

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A hall for the feasts

A triumph of colour

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto