S. MARY OF HELP AND HOLY HOUSE OF LORETO

From the Cathedral Square, taking Via Garibaldi and turning left onto Via S. Giovanni, one arrives at the church of S. Maria dell?Aiuto built in the 1840s on the site of a small church dedicated to Saints Peter and Paul.

In the 14th century outside the small church, near the courtyard of mercy, an icon of Byzantine taste, believed to be miraculous, was displayed and was the object of Marian veneration. In today's church, the icon that is the object of Marian worship is housed on the high altar. The architecture is the work of Antonino Battaglia who, together with his father Francesco and cousin Carmelo, was one of the architects who worked for the reconstruction of Catania after the disastrous earthquake of 1693. 

From inside the church it is possible to access a copy of the Holy House of Loreto. This work is due to the devotion of Canon Giuseppe Lauria, who had a copy of the famous Marches temple made on a slightly reduced scale.

According to legend, the Holy House of Loreto was the house where Mary received a visit from the Archangel Gabriel announcing the coming of the baby Jesus.

After the Palestinian holy sites the scene of Jesus' life were occupied by Muslims in the Middle Ages, legend has it that it was angels who transported Mary's house to Loreto. The Catanese reproduction inside, in the Marian depictions on the walls and altar, bears remarkable similarities to the original.

The exterior walls, on the other hand, are covered with a beautiful marble facing, with a refined architectural score and plastic reliefs depicting Old Testament characters.