Caltagirone

A long reconstruction

The church of Santa Chiara (St. Claire) is located in the eastern part of the town on Via Giovanni Bosco, not far from the church of Gesù (Jesus).
Legend has it that it was St. Claire who had both the church and monastery built. Unfortunately, nothing has been preserved of the ancient structures.
The earthquake of 1693 damaged both buildings. Reconstruction was not immediate, but had to wait until 1740. In that year the abbess explained to the Bishop of Syracuse, Matteo Trigona, that it was necessary to intervene since the state and condition of the structures were badly damaged. The Bishop commissioned a group of experts to oversee the reconstruction, but money soon ran out.
Everything changed in 1743, when the Bishop announced that the works would resume during his visit to Caltagirone.
The project was entrusted to one of the best architects of the time, Rosario Gagliardi .
A church was built with a plan in the shape of an irregular octagon, with a narrow, long façade that swelled outwards like a sort of belly.
The façade also has only one entrance door enclosed at the sides by two giant order columns and on top by a tympanum , not with a continuous line, but a broken one.
Inside, the splendid maiolica , flooring is striking. Green, blue and yellow accompany worshippers up to the balustrade, which is also made with maiolica tiles from Caltagirone.
foto prospetto foto Facciata dettaglio timpano edicola foto Dettagli della decorazione

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A talking palace

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

An eagle-shaped city

A museum to save a tradition

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A half-Baroque church

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A small room with a golden entrance

A new site for a new city

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

The internal colours

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

Some masterpieces

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Two illustrious patron saints

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The two churches

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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 Evangelista

A hall for the feasts

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A new site for a new church

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Baroque town by the sea

A majestic and luminous church

Discovering the mother church

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Between white and black

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The interior and its masterpieces

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Searching for colour

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A triumph of colour

The city of museums

A miniature city

One city, three sites

A long reconstruction

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The theatre of taste

Prominent façade

The chocolate of Modica

Wonderful quick decorations

A feast only for Scicli

Norman apses

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Maiolica of the staircase

Some prestigious works

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A colourful floor

The church of Carmine

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A symbol for the town

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A prominent church

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

The wall comes to life

Feast days

A city in colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Modica, a city with ancient origins

New roads for Catania

From International Gothic to present day

The disastrous earthquake

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

One city, two sites

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Staircase of Angels

The colours of the cathedral

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