Caltagirone

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

sight
Infinite colours for a single staircase

scala-infisorata-caltagironeWow!
The Staircase of St. Mary of the Mountain during the town’s most important feasts is an exciting sight.
In May the taircase becomes a colourful carpet of plants and flowers that perfume the air and together create a spectacular design dedicated to the Madonna dei Conadomini.
But it doesn’t stop here! To celebrate St. James and the Assumption of Mary into Heaven, 4000 tea lights are lit, one by one, to form a unique design on the staircase!
All the inhabitants take part and thousands of people meet at the foot of the staircase, all looking for the best viewpoint.

smell
The scent of the feasts

In addition to its colours and lights during the two most important feasts, the Staircase of St. Mary of the Mountain is also filled with various scents.
The smell of flowers accompanies the feast dedicated to the Madonna Conadomini, while burning wax is the typical aroma for the celebrations of St. James and the Assumption of the Virgin.
The flames of 140 tea lights illuminate the staircase until they go out, giving way to a slight burning smell.

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A hall for the feasts

A long reconstruction

A half-Baroque church

A talking palace

The Baroque town by the sea

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

One city, three sites

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

The interior and its masterpieces

A feast only for Scicli

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

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

The church of Carmine

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A prominent church

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

A symbol for the town

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Feast days

A new site for a new church

A colourful floor

The chocolate of Modica

A majestic and luminous church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The colours of the cathedral

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The internal colours

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The two churches

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Searching for colour

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A small room with a golden entrance

Wonderful quick decorations

A city in colour

A miniature city

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

An eagle-shaped city

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Some masterpieces

Between white and black

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A museum to save a tradition

Discovering the mother church

From International Gothic to present day

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

New roads for Catania

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Norman apses

The Staircase of Angels

Many owners, one palace

One city, two sites

The wall comes to life

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A new site for a new city

The disastrous earthquake

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A triumph of colour

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Burgos crucifix

Prominent façade

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso