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

Norman apses

A new site for a new city

The two churches

One city, three sites

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A talking palace

A symbol for the town

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A half-Baroque church

A long reconstruction

The Staircase of Angels

Wonderful quick decorations

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

The colours of the cathedral

A Nobel Prize in Modica

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Maiolica of the staircase

A city in colour

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A new site for a new church

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

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

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

A square as the heart of the city

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A museum to save a tradition

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A prominent church

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The theatre of taste

The disastrous earthquake

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Prominent façade

A small room with a golden entrance

The interior and its masterpieces

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A triumph of colour

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A colourful floor

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Some masterpieces

Some prestigious works

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

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Searching for colour

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Between white and black

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The wall comes to life

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Burgos crucifix

Discovering the mother church

The internal colours

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A majestic and luminous church

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

From International Gothic to present day

Feast days

The Baroque town by the sea

One city, two sites

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A miniature city

Many owners, one palace

The chocolate of Modica

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

An eagle-shaped city

A feast only for Scicli

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The city of museums

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The church of Carmine

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins