Located between the Val di Noto and Catania, Militello is a borgo of history and art, but also of oranges and traditional sweets of grape must and prickly pears. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site listed as The Baroque Cities of the Val di Noto. Rich in churches, palaces, other late Baroque buildings and details throughout the borgo, Militello’s origins date back to the Byzantine era (6-9th century) adapting a rupestrian necropolis into houses. Following the catastrophic earthquake of 1693, the borgo was effectively reconstructed in the late Baroque style. This is beautifully represented by the Church of Santa Maria della Stella and the Mother Church of San Nicolò and Santissimo Salvatore. The latter is rich in art treasures – silverware, prints, vestments, sculptures and paintings, most are on display in the Museum located in its basement. It’s during the reign of Prince Branciforte and his wife Giovanna of Austria, grand-daughter of Charles V, in the early 1600s, that Militello lived its golden age. They commissioned the Church of San Benedetto next to the Benedictine Monastery that contains magnificent furnishings and sumptuous polychrome marble altars and is the third largest in Sicily.