Church of S. Agata al Carcere
Piazza Santo Carcere. Near the Church of Sant'Agata alla Fornace. The Church of Sant'Agata al Carcere is built on what remains of the Bastione del Santo Carcere, belonging to the 1693th century walls of Charles V. According to tradition, Sant'Agata was held prisoner in this place before undergoing martyrdom. The church has different styles due to the renovations over the centuries. The first construction dates back to the XNUMXth century. The baroque facade, destroyed by the earthquake of XNUMX, was rebuilt according to a design by Giovan Battista Vaccarini, the white marble portal with a round arch is instead in the Swabian style, and was recovered from the cathedral, is supported by six columns decorated in three ways different and by two pillars that present biblical figures and symbols intertwined with each other by a molding with a floral motif. The interior consists of two different bodies. The front, rebuilt after the earthquake, is Baroque with a barrel vault; while the oldest part of the apse is Gothic. Inside it is possible to visit the "Prison of the Patroness" consisting of two small rooms: the first contains a small altar, the second, narrow and elongated and with a barrel vault, is the cell where, according to tradition, he found the death of S. Agata. Next to the entrance door of the prison, there is a stone with the imprint left by the bloody foot of the saint and then carved, immediately after the death of S. Agata, by the people of Catania.
Card insertion: Ignatius Caloggero
Photo: Ignazio Caloggero
Information contributions: Ignazio Caloggero, Web
Audio Fact Sheet: Ignazio Caloggero, as part of the Lions District Service District 108 YB, year 2022-2023: "Sicily For the Blind, Let's Make Cultural and Environmental Heritage Enjoyable" with the text provided by the Catania Lions Club
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