Jewel of the Sicilian Late Baroque, an example of architectural integration between different eras, it is indicated by UNESCO in the World Heritage List. Founded in 1558, the history of the monastery develops up to the present day thanks to the refurbishment intervention signed by the architect Giancarlo De Carlo. Inside you can read the transformations it underwent due to the lava eruption and the earthquake, but also from the several different uses to which it was put starting from 1866. Now home to the Department of Humanities – Unict, the monastery houses Roman roads and domus inside it, cloisters and the kitchens of the 1700s made famous by Federico De Roberto.
Piazza Dante, 32 – Catania +39 095 7102767 / +39 334 9242464 info@officineculturali.net www.monasterodeibenedettini.it
Since 2010, thanks to an agreement with the University of Catania and subsequently since 2020 because of a special public-private partnership, we have been working to make a unique and extraordinary monument accessible and understandable, also creating an opportunity for social entrepreneurship for a group of people who have trained at the University of Catania. Furthermore, from a Third Mission perspective we transform research on cultural heritage into knowledge accessible to many people.
Using different languages ââwe create services to the public even outside regular working hours. Guided tours, laboratories, theatrical performances are just some of the initiatives and activities for visitors, boys and girls, boys and girls. The Benedictine Monastery is also at the center of projects focused on the active and participatory involvement of the local community and the community of students, men and women.
The Benedictine Monastery presents itself to visitors as one of the jewels of Sicilian Late Baroque. Founded by “Cassinesi” monks in 1558; devastated by natural disasters; Destroyed and rebuilt, the monastery is an example of integrations between historical eras. By visiting it, you can read it, as an open book, the changes it has undergone, but also the civil uses to which it was put immediately after the Unification of Italy, until its transformation into a university building.
Now home to the DiSUM of the University of Catania, the monastery is a unique place that tells the human and historical events of the city at the feet of Etna from ancient times to the present day. A palimpsest open to everyone, every day.
With the guided tours organized by Officine Culturali you will be able to discover the secular history of the former monastic complex and the Montevergine Hill. The guided tours will lead you among the majestic architecture, the labyrinthine corridors and lush gardens of the Benedictine Monastery of Catania.
From Monday to Sunday a guided tour from 10:00 to 12:00 and from 14:00 to 17:00. At 13:00 and 16:30 guided tours in English.
The guided tours last approximately 75 minutes and include the most significant spaces of the Monastery: the two cloisters, the 16th century cellar now converted into the Library of the Department of Humanities (Unict), the Roman house, the Novizi Garden, and at the end the 18th century kitchens and cellars, designed by the architect Vaccarini, and the sumptuous monumental staircase
Full ticket âŹ10 with different reductions
The monastery is accessible to people with motor disabilities. Blind visitors will be able to use tactile supports during the guided tour.