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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Limestone, the colour of harmony

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A miniature city

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

The chocolate of Modica

A new site for a new church

The theatre of taste

Prominent façade

One city, two sites

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

From International Gothic to present day

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

A hall for the feasts

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A symbol for the town

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A long reconstruction

An eagle-shaped city

Some masterpieces

Some prestigious works

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

Two illustrious patron saints

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A small room with a golden entrance

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Between white and black

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

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

The wall comes to life

A museum to save a tradition

The two churches

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

A prominent church

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Discovering the mother church

The internal colours

Wonderful quick decorations

A talking palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Burgos crucifix

Many owners, one palace

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Staircase of Angels

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A city in colour

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A triumph of colour

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A feast only for Scicli

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

The church of Carmine

The disastrous earthquake

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

One city, three sites

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The city of museums

The Baroque town by the sea

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A colourful floor

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The interior and its masterpieces

A new site for a new city

A square as the heart of the city

Norman apses

The Maiolica of the staircase

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Feast days

A half-Baroque church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

A majestic and luminous church

Searching for colour