Any church housing a Caravaggio painting is worth a visit in my opinion. A bit disappointed at accessibility of painting. Can only view from behind a cordoned off area at least 10 ft from it. Plus the stand holding information about it was right in the centre of the viewing area. At the bottom of the church, various images from the painting are recreated but it's not the same as viewing as a whole. Cannot compare to entering Sant'Agostino in Rome and paying a few cent to illuminate the Madonna of Loreto at close quarters but I'm sure there's a reason why we cannot appreciate Burial of Saint Lucy in the same way.
This church currently has Caravaggio's wonderful painting of The Burial of St Lucy on loan to it. The church can be visited all day, but you can't generally see much of the painting, as it is placed over the altar but obscured by the large and much venerated silver statue of St Lucy. Between 1100 and 1400 very good lighting is switched on and the ropes protecting the altar area are moved so that a few people at a time can get a very good view of the painting. There's no charge, but you might have to wait a little for a good view. Don't miss it though.
It was a true history lesson. Again in Ortygia duomo, this place is one of the best spots in Sicily to leave you speechless. The church isltself is like many other in this region, beautiful, you cannot miss it if just standing in any part of the Duomo. Going inside is an expirience that is hard to explain and even more breathtaking. Real Caravaggio standing in frot of you, in that darkened modest ambient, a piece of history and one of the biggest events in Sicilian history, Burial of Santa Lucia, leaves you speechless. Just standing there and respecting the moment. Amazing expirience, dont miss if you are in Syracuse this summer. BIG respect!
As others have said, it is all about the Caravaggio painting - The Burial of St Lucy, who was martyred here in 304 AD.
For the time being Caravaggios wondeful tender Burial of Saint Lucy is squeezed above the altar, although it wasn,t intended for this church its a great setting and for a small contribution you can have it to yourself on some days.They play music in the church which is not obtrusive and matches the setting.If you get a chance travel north to Messina and you can have another two of his paintings to yourself.
To be honest I went for the Caravaggio painting "Il seppelimento di Santa Lucia" which is magnificent. It's very realistic and dramatic, compressed into the bottom third of the canvas.
Very reccomended as you can see the architectural evolution of two milleniums compressed into one monument. It is well worth paying for the audio guide and taking your time to absorb the atmosphere and data.
It is a smaller version of Catacombs of St. John. It is accessible by the church, we can see the tunnels of the cemetery hidden underground.
It is not his most impressive work but, to be fair to him, it was conducted in haste. You can see elements of his 'Taking of Christ' in the figures surrounding the burial of St Lucy.
It is worth going into the Chiesa di santa Lucia just to see Caravaggio's painting of The Burial of St Lucy. The church is easy to find when walking into the main Piazza.