One of the high points of late Catanese Baroque decorative work

Chiesa di san benedetto volta

Forming part of the uninterrupted sequence of churches and monasteries that makes up Via Crociferi, the San Benedetto Church can be considered one of the high points of late Catanese Baroque decorative work. Via Crociferi, which takes its name from the church of San Camillo dei Padri Crociferi located at the end of the road, sits in an extremely interesting urban context.

The road was built halfway up the hill on which the theatre and odium also sit and connected the Porta del Re ( above Piazza Stesicoro) with Piano San Filippo ( Piazza Mazzini).

One of the features of this road ( which has been used as a setting for famous literary and cinematographic works) is the large San Benedetto arch between the Badia Grande ( “Large Abbey” -  next to the church ) and the Badia Piccola. Due to the grace of its harmonious enterety, this last has been attributed to the architect G. Battista Vaccarini.

The current appearance of the church of San Benedetto dates to the reconstruction following the 1693 earth-quake which had completely destroyed the original place of worship adorned with pictures, sculptures, marbles and precious furnishings. In that tragic event 55 of the 60 nuns who lived in the buildings next to the church perished.

Reconstruction began in July of that year and in 1704 the arch was raised and in1708 the large church was cleared and work began.

The façade ( the architect is unkown) is in limestone with its first order marked by half columns with capitals that support a indented trabeation and a tympanum split with allegories of Temperanza ( “ Temperance”) and Fortezza ( “ Strength”).

Other full relief statues, characteristic of that Baroque theatricality that tends to transform churches into theatrical scenes, render the prospect animated – the large entrance with scenes from Saint Benedict’s life stands out.

Inside there is a vestibule with a polychrome marble floor. The double dog-leg stairways are emphasized by a sinuous balustrade on which eight staties of angels stand.

At the top of the stairway is a twentieth-century engraved glass door.

The single-naved church is illuminated through six large windows on the vault and by refined triple-volute chandeliers on the trabeation.

The beautiful floor in late seventeenth century polychrome marble was recovered from the ruins of the earthquake. Of particular interest, because extremely intricate, is the main altar in hard stone, hallmarked silver and pure Venetian gold, made between 1792 and 1795 by V. Todaro and B. Matteo.

In the dome of the aspe is a fresco by the Messinese painter G.Tuccari (1667- 1743), Incoronazione della Vergine.

The vaults were decorated, again by Tuccari, with episodes which narrate the life and work of San Benedetto. In the wide curvilinear space the painter has distributed a series of characters, allegories and decoration that shine on a golden background.

Above the glass door is the gilded eighteenth-century choir in pure rococo style.

Among the works of art in the church is an Immacolata by S. Lo Monaco ( late 1700s), a San Benedetto by M. Rapisardi ( 1822-1886), the Santissimo Crocefisso altar with its background of dark marble, the Martirio di Sant’Agata an anonymous fresco dating to around 1726.

copyright Giuseppe Maimone Publisher