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.

A majestic and luminous church

A colourful floor

Many owners, one palace

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

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Wonderful quick decorations

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

One city, two sites

From International Gothic to present day

The internal colours

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Discovering the mother church

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

A prominent church

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

A hall for the feasts

The interior and its masterpieces

Norman apses

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

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

Between white and black

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

The city of museums

A miniature city

Feast days

An eagle-shaped city

A symbol for the town

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

St. Sebastian, so much work!

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A museum to save a tradition

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

New roads for Catania

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A square as the heart of the city

A new site for a new church

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A small room with a golden entrance

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Some masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Two illustrious patron saints

The colours of the cathedral

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The disastrous earthquake

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Burgos crucifix

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A long reconstruction

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Staircase of Angels

Some prestigious works

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Feasting in Palazzolo

The church of Carmine

A half-Baroque church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

A triumph of colour

A talking palace

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The wall comes to life

The Maiolica of the staircase

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The two churches

Searching for colour

A new site for a new city

Connections with other UNESCO sites

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

The theatre of taste

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A city in colour

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

One city, three sites

The Baroque town by the sea

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