Militello in Val di Catania

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

During the feudal dominion of the Barresi-Branciforte family, the town of Militello in Val di Catania underwent remarkable restoration and reorganisation.
The enlightened prince Francesco Branciforte married Joanna of Austria, granddaughter of Charles V and cousin of the King of Spain, then launched an urbanisation plan to redesign the small town and adapt it to new cultural and political needs. The town’s transformations included one that involved the fortified castle, which was turned into a palace and equipped in 1612 with a well-stocked library , printing house and a sort of chemical laboratory. foto castello barresi branciforte
A public fountain was later built in the castle’s courtyard.
The square of the mother church was updated in 1617 alongside the two main streets in the centre of Militello, which were widened and straightened.
Connecting roads were also built outside the former perimeter walls, which encouraged the creation of new districts.
The powerful family also promoted patronage and funded the reconstruction of the bell tower of the Chiesa Madre di San Nicolò (Mother Church of St. Nicholas) and the extension of the Church of Santa Maria (St. Mary), which became the Barresi family’s burial place in the 16th century.

A museum to save a tradition

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Some prestigious works

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Two illustrious patron saints

The church of Carmine

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A new site for a new city

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A triumph of colour

The interior and its masterpieces

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Some masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A talking palace

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The colours of the cathedral

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

The city of museums

The theatre of taste

A symbol for the town

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

The internal colours

The disastrous earthquake

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Between white and black

The Maiolica of the staircase

A majestic and luminous church

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A hall for the feasts

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

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

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

From International Gothic to present day

A miniature city

One city, two sites

A long reconstruction

The wall comes to life

A small room with a golden entrance

A city in colour

Discovering the mother church

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

A colourful floor

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Searching for colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A square as the heart of the city

A half-Baroque church

A new site for a new church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

New roads for Catania

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Prominent façade

Feast days

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The Staircase of Angels

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Wonderful quick decorations

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

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Many owners, one palace

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Norman apses

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A feast only for Scicli

A prominent church

The chocolate of Modica

An eagle-shaped city

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

One city, three sites