Catania

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

sight
What a view!

If we climbed the steps leading to the terrace above the abbey of St. Agatha, perhaps we would be a little tired or out of breath, but there would be a splendid landscape before us.
The entire city can be seen from here: the Bellini Theatre, the Cathedral, the Ursino Castle, the churches on Via Crociferi and the great Benedictine monastery.
The cloistered nuns (who never left the monastery) used this terrace to participate in city life and attend processions without being seen.

smell
The scent of church candles

The smell of wax is one of the most characteristic scents inside a church and in the streets of Catania during the patron saint’s celebrations.
Votive candles are still produced today in Catania’s artisanal workshops using techniques and raw materials steeped in ancient knowledge.
There were originally two types of candles: those made with beeswax, which were more refined and expensive, and those made with animal fat, which were far cheaper but gave off an unpleasant smell and smoke.

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

The wall comes to life

The Staircase of Angels

The city of museums

A half-Baroque church

New roads for Catania

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A feast only for Scicli

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Some prestigious works

One city, three sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A square as the heart of the city

Feast days

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A majestic and luminous church

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

Norman apses

A long reconstruction

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

A talking palace

Prominent façade

A hall for the feasts

Between white and black

The interior and its masterpieces

Feasting in Palazzolo

Searching for colour

From International Gothic to present day

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

A small room with a golden entrance

Discovering the mother church

The Burgos crucifix

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

Some masterpieces

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A symbol for the town

A city in colour

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The two churches

The Maiolica of the staircase

Many owners, one palace

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The colours of the cathedral

A museum to save a tradition

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

An eagle-shaped city

A colourful floor

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A triumph of colour

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A Nobel Prize in Modica

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A new site for a new city

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The chocolate of Modica

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

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

Two illustrious patron saints

The Baroque town by the sea

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

The internal colours

Wonderful quick decorations

One city, two sites

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A miniature city

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A prominent church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom