Militello in Val di Catania

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

hearing
Sound on

The feast for the Holy Saviour of Militello involves its citizens and also attracts inhabitants from nearby villages and tourists: everyone is invited!
During the celebrations the most diverse sounds can be heard: cannon shots announcing the approaching feast; bells ringing to alert citizens of the beginning of the festivities; voices of the participants, the local band, and the prayers of the processions.
It’s impossible not to feel involved in the festivities, with each sound reminiscent of a precise moment.

sight
And then comes red…

The church interior looks like a white canvas with strokes of colour from the frescoes and stucco decorations that create plays of light and shadow.
The delicate white walls were combined with a white and grey chequered floor, with a geometric design formed of straight lines in an excellent contrast with the walls.
These delicate tones are enlivened during the feast of the Holy Saviour; long red drapes decorate the nave and the interior is transformed by colour!

smell
The memory of smell

The smell of the candle offered by the mayor and the scent of the flowers that adorn the streets are unmistakable, inevitable parts of the feast of the Holy Saviour.
These smells remain imprinted in the memory of young and old people alike, and whenever you catch a hint of them, they bring to mind moments of celebration and joy.

taste
Quince paste for the Holy Saviour

The feast of the Santissimo Salvatore (Holy Saviour) is also an opportunity to eat some typical sweets such as cognata (quince paste).
The recipe is very simple and requires only three ingredients: quince, sugar and lemon.
The ingredients are cooked using the same process as jam and placed in moulds for the mixture to solidify into a gelatinous consistency.
Special moulds in the shape of a globe with a cross on top are used for the feast of the Holy Saviour. La cotognata

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

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The two churches

Some masterpieces

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

One city, two sites

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The disastrous earthquake

Between white and black

A hall for the feasts

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

One city, three sites

An eagle-shaped city

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

The interior and its masterpieces

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A city in colour

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

A triumph of colour

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Searching for colour

Many owners, one palace

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Wonderful quick decorations

The Maiolica of the staircase

Norman apses

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The colours of the cathedral

Some prestigious works

A long reconstruction

A prominent church

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

A talking palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Burgos crucifix

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A square as the heart of the city

A miniature city

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Staircase of Angels

The theatre of taste

The Baroque town by the sea

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A museum to save a tradition

A new site for a new city

Two illustrious patron saints

From International Gothic to present day

Discovering the mother church

A half-Baroque church

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The wall comes to life

Prominent façade

The church of Carmine

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The internal colours

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

Feast days

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A symbol for the town

The chocolate of Modica

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A colourful floor

A feast only for Scicli

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Limestone, the colour of harmony

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A new site for a new church