The architect Contini was born in Rome in 1642. He was initially trained by his father before perfecting his studies with Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Contini's choice in the reconstruction of the church of San Nicolò l'Arena was also dictated by his important training with Bernini, so much so that in 1...

The painter from Messina was born on 12 November 1831. He carried out his first studies in his native city then went to Rome in 1854 where he established relations with academic and purist circles and participated in some important exhibitions. The recurring themes in his paintings are the events o...

A barrel vault with lunettes is formed by crossing two barrel vaults of different sizes. The main vault with the largest radius is the covering element of an architectural environment, and the secondary vault with the smallest radius is used to create an opening along the surface of the main vault...

The dome of the cathedral of San Giorgio is a veritable work of art. Built in neoclassical style, it dominates the entire panorama of Ibla and at the intersection between the transept and the nave, rises up for just over 40 metres above street level. The double segmental dome structure created by o...

Giovanni Tuccari, the painter who frescoed the church vault, was named "fulmine della pittura" (lightning-fast painter) for his speed. It took him very little time to paint such a large surface, because he used the same technique as some 18th-century artists who had similar requirements. From a dis...

An exedra, from the Greek meaning a "seat out of doors", is defined as an architectural space of semi-circular shape, delimited by a colonnade or a niche and covered by a semi-dome. In ancient times, an exedra was a place used for meeting and philosophical conversation and for this reason it was of...

The writer Giovanni Verga (1840-1922) decided to visit a cousin who had embraced monastic life. During their meeting, he was particularly struck by the estrangement between them; the nuns, who sat behind window grilles, had their faces hidden and were not easily distinguishable. This physical an...

The Benedictine Nuns of Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament are cloistered nuns dedicated to uninterrupted Eucharistic adoration, which involves endless activity day and night. Their activity aims to makes reparations and atone for sin, through the "Ora et Labora" (Pray and Work) rule of ...

The side portal of the old mother church of San Giorgio was saved from the earthquake of 1693 and can still be admired today near the Hyblaean Garden. The magnificent portal in Catalan-Gothic style is made entirely of carved stone, with the typical splay seen in most portals of that period. In the...

Rosario Gagliardi was born around 1690 in Syracuse to Onofrio Domenico, a Calabrian carpenter who had settled in Syracuse, and Maria Conti. The family lived in Syracuse in a district called "degli Bottagherelli" until 1707, when their father moved to Noto for work. It was in this town that Gagliar...