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 two churches

A new site for a new city

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A talking palace

Some prestigious works

A square as the heart of the city

The internal colours

One city, three sites

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Many owners, one palace

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A long reconstruction

The interior and its masterpieces

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

A symbol for the town

The Staircase of Angels

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Wonderful quick decorations

Discovering the mother church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A prominent church

A hall for the feasts

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

An eagle-shaped city

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A majestic and luminous church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A small room with a golden entrance

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A miniature city

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

The theatre of taste

Between white and black

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

New roads for Catania

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The disastrous earthquake

The Baroque town by the sea

A feast only for Scicli

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

The colours of the cathedral

One city, two sites

Feast days

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

Some masterpieces

The city of museums

The wall comes to life

Two illustrious patron saints

A museum to save a tradition

A colourful floor

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Searching for colour

The church of Carmine

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A city in colour

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A triumph of colour

The chocolate of Modica

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Norman apses

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Burgos crucifix

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A new site for a new church

Connections with other UNESCO sites

From International Gothic to present day

Prominent façade

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church