Scicli

A feast only for Scicli

Madonna a Cavallo, Chiesa MadreOn the last Saturday of May the Madonna a Cavallo (Madonna on Horseback) is celebrated in Scicli. This very important feast celebrates the liberation of Christians from Arab rule.
In 1091 Roger I of Sicily and his army freed Scicli from the Saracens, but they didn’t do it all by themselves… The Madonna on horseback came to their aid. Also known as the Madonna delle Milizie (Madonna of the Militia), she miraculously appeared and took part in the final battle. This incredible event could not be forgotten, so it is still celebrated every year.
In her honour, the town is decorated with lights and all the citizens participate in long processions; it is the only feast in the world where a warrior virgin is celebrated.
A play is also put on that tells the story of the battle and the miraculous appearance. To mark this day for remembering the Virgin’s miraculous intervention, typical desserts are prepared called Teste di Turco (“Testi Turcu” in dialect), meaning Turkish Heads. These desserts are an ideological trophy. In fact, their shape is reminiscent of the turbans that covered the heads of the defeated invaders. Despite their inspiration, they are delicious pastry puffs filled with ricotta cheese or custard.

The disastrous earthquake

Modica, a city with ancient origins

From International Gothic to present day

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Prominent façade

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new site for a new church

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

A prominent church

A museum to save a tradition

A city in colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

A symbol for the town

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A triumph of colour

Norman apses

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

The chocolate of Modica

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

One city, two sites

Feast days

Many owners, one palace

One city, three sites

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The Maiolica of the staircase

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Burgos crucifix

The interior and its masterpieces

The wall comes to life

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

The two churches

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The church of Carmine

The Staircase of Angels

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A long reconstruction

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Discovering the mother church

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

A square as the heart of the city

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

A hall for the feasts

Some masterpieces

A small room with a golden entrance

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A talking palace

The internal colours

A colourful floor

The colours of the cathedral

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Some prestigious works

An eagle-shaped city

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Searching for colour

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

New roads for Catania

Two illustrious patron saints

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A majestic and luminous church

A half-Baroque church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The theatre of taste

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

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

Between white and black

A miniature city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Wonderful quick decorations

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A new site for a new city

A feast only for Scicli

The city of museums

The Baroque town by the sea