Caltagirone

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

hearing
Listening was important

With a little imagination you can return to 1800 when the church was still used by the nuns and you could listen to the liturgical celebrations.
Worshippers and the nuns attended mass. But there was a problem!
The nuns could not be seen by anyone because they lived in seclusion.
So how did they attend mass? Galleries, like a sort of box seat, were built with louvre blinds (grilles), behind which they could watch the celebrations without being seen.

touch
Touch to discover

Touching objects is one of our instincts and gives us an immediate connection to what is in front of us.
Touching the façade of Santa Chiara (St. Claire) would help us understand the material’s hardness, the stone’s temperature and the porosity of the surface (smooth or rough), giving us a great deal of information in a very short time.
When comparing this information with other objects, we uncover the differences between one material and another.
The maiolica tiles on the floor of Santa Chiara are colder and much smoother to the touch than the façade. The wood of the galleries, on the other hand, is warmer than the sandstone façade and the maiolica floor and balustrade.

sight
Antependium

The alter area hides a masterpiece: the antependium.
Situated in the front part of the altar, the artists took inspiration from Renaissance architecture for the decoration.
The result was a splendid scenographic effect, amplified by the use of mirrors and embellished with materials such as amber and wood covered with silver sheets, then worked to imitate gold.
The light that hits it creates wonderful reflections that illuminate the room. foto edificio a specchi

The Burgos crucifix

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A miniature city

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The two churches

From International Gothic to present day

A half-Baroque church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A city in colour

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A square as the heart of the city

The disastrous earthquake

A new site for a new city

A majestic and luminous church

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Feast days

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Many owners, one palace

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Searching for colour

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

Discovering the mother church

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The city of museums

A prominent church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

An eagle-shaped city

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

A museum to save a tradition

Norman apses

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A new site for a new church

A long reconstruction

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A talking palace

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A feast only for Scicli

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

One city, two sites

Wonderful quick decorations

Prominent façade

One city, three sites

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Maiolica of the staircase

The internal colours

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The colours of the cathedral

A hall for the feasts

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The church of Carmine

A symbol for the town

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The chocolate of Modica

Some prestigious works

A triumph of colour

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

Some masterpieces

The Staircase of Angels

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

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Between white and black

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

The interior and its masterpieces

A colourful floor

The theatre of taste

A small room with a golden entrance

Two illustrious patron saints

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

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The wall comes to life