Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

sight
Brightness and light

Colour, light and more colour!
The vault is a riot of colour, capable of making the figures and shapes stand out, and leaving visitors gazing upwards.
As for the altar, it attracts attention thanks to the brilliance and shine of gold, silver and the precious sparkling stones used to decorate it.
The church is a treasure trove of precious jewels.

hearing
A sound to accompany prayer

It’s 1790 and you’re inside the church of St. Benedict, attending one of the services… You can hear something… what is it?
The organ!
With a sound alternating between gentle and low, it accompanies prayer as impressed worshippers celebrate Holy Mass.
Then the bells announce the end of the service.
Their chimes vibrate in the atmosphere and resonate along Via dei Crociferi.

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A majestic and luminous church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A hall for the feasts

A triumph of colour

The chocolate of Modica

A miniature city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A museum to save a tradition

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A colourful floor

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

Prominent façade

New roads for Catania

A city in colour

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

Searching for colour

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Staircase of Angels

Norman apses

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A half-Baroque church

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

One city, two sites

Feast days

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

The Burgos crucifix

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A long reconstruction

A feast only for Scicli

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Baroque town by the sea

A new site for a new church

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The wall comes to life

The internal colours

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

Between white and black

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A new site for a new city

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The two churches

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A talking palace

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

An eagle-shaped city

Feasting in Palazzolo

Some masterpieces

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The theatre of taste

Wonderful quick decorations

The city of museums

The church of Carmine

The Maiolica of the staircase

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

One city, three sites

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Discovering the mother church

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

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

A symbol for the town

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

From International Gothic to present day

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A square as the heart of the city

A small room with a golden entrance

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The colours of the cathedral

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The disastrous earthquake

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Some prestigious works

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Many owners, one palace

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The interior and its masterpieces