Mother Church of San Basilio in Regalbuto

Mother Church of San Basilio in Regalbuto: a show of eighteenth-century elegance and style.
The Mother Church dedicated to San Basilio is located in the center of Regalbuto, and is one of the main buildings that characterize the folklore and history of this splendid place. In this guide we will go together to discover its architecture and its jewels, an experience that will amaze all those who have not yet tasted the beauty of the city of Regalbuto.

The History of the Mother Church

The history of the Church unfolds in the early years of the modern age, together with the wanderings, travels and populations that met and clashed with their cultural tradition in this Ionian part of Sicily.
The Mother Church of San Basilio in Regalbuto stands on the remains of what was an ancient Byzantine monastery, whose monks practiced the Orthodox rite. Following the earthquake that occurred in 1693, the Church was further restructured and the changes that characterize it as we see it today were made.

Indeed, from that earthquake began a series of improvements both to the exterior and interior of the Church, which lasted throughout the 700th century.
From 1720 to 1733 the work on the transept was completed; from 1735 to 1744 the construction of the beautiful bell tower was started - by an unknown master from Mineo. Finally, in a constructive effort that lasted until 1766, the bishop of Catania, who elevated the church to the role of 'collegiate', finally promoted the construction and renovation of the facade that we can still find today.

It is in this same period, starting from mid eighteenth century, that the works for the internal part of the Mother Church are also financed: it is evident that the ecclesiastical and city nobility are in favor of the renewal of this real monument of Regalbuto.

A long series of renovations and restorations

At first, the tender was won by the famous architect and artist from Catania Francesco Battaglia, who proposed his project to the ecclesiastical and city authorities, which however apparently neither surprised nor captivated due to its somewhat 'obvious' beauty. The following year, in 1755, the contract was instead entrusted to a religious of the order of the crucifers of Palermo: it is about Ferdinando Lombardo. It is he who lays the foundations for a new one style of Sicilian ecclesiastical architecture, starting on the island an eighteenth-century taste that had already seen light in other places in Italy.

In 1772 the beauties of the Church were further updated by the notable contributions of the architect Stefano Ittar, a well-known name in Catania. Among the main beauties created during these works we can certainly enumerate the large segmental arch specially created for the position of the organ.

The artistic profile of the Mother Church of San Basilio in Regalbuto

Let us now immerse ourselves in the artistic and architectural description of the church, which stands right on Piazza della Repubblica, next to the town of Regalbuto.
We enter the Church for visit its architectural wonders, amazed like a novice tourist in front of a beauty never conceived.
As soon as you enter, you notice the presence of a single large nave with two side chapels and two fenestrated transepts surmounted in turn by two domes, of different sizes.

The presentation of the interior is quite modest, typical of the eighteenth-century style: a rigorous white accompanied only by graceful stuccos in gold and painted by a delicate hand, which contrast markedly with the excessive baroque style of the previous century. The interior, so vast and monumental, is tranquil with an idea of ​​elegant welcome, also perpetuated by the large windows from which a fairly expansive light is modulated.

Illuminated by these effects, it certainly stands out splendid organ covered in gold with gilded choir and wood. Alongside this extremely bright and candid first part, we are amazed by the contrast with the semi-darkness superimposed on the High Altar: all this guarantees a theatricality that is never imposing and overwhelming but always delicate and amazing, which recalls the celebration of the liturgical rite with princely memories.

The artistic beauties of the interiors

The artistic-architectural marvels of the interior of the Church of San Basilio in Regalbuto catch the eye with lightning speed: the first transit on the left, to begin with, is accompanied by the majestic altar dedicated to San Vito, a work that rises for about ten meters, characterized by the presence of a polychromy of marbles.

The magnificent immediately attracts the eye wooden statue dedicated to Saint Basilleaning towards the cross: a work created by the Neapolitan artist Giuseppe Picano, in 1790. Inside the church the other pictorial works are the 14 paintings depicting the stages of the Via Crucis and the 5 canvases of the minor altars dedicated to Saint Basil and the apostles Peter and Paul.

Furthermore, entering the church, we cannot avoid admiring the presence of a polychrome marble floor, with the most varied geometric shapes, created in 1886.

How to get to Regalbuto

By car:
A19 Palermo-Catania motorway, Catenanuova exit both for those coming from Palermo and for those coming from Catania. Once in Catenanuova just follow the provincial SP23bis for 12 kilometres.
alternatively it is possible to use the SS121 Palermo-Catania state road. While this is the shortest route into Regalbuto, it is not used much.