The Church of Santa Maria del Monte is situated in the oldest part of the town and was once dedicated to St. Mary of the Assumption.
Damaged and rebuilt several times, the building is located at the top of the famous staircase of Caltagirone which, built in 1606 by the master builder of the Kingdom Giuseppe Giacalone, satisfied the need to directly connect the Mother Church with the City Palace.
The nave’s vault is adorned with frescoes portraying biblical heroines Rebecca, Abigail, Judith, and Esther.
Ecclesiastical tradition has identified them as prefigurations of the Virgin.
The church has several side altars, including one dedicated to the Madonna del Salterio. The marble statue in this altar is attributed to Domenico Gagini.
Another altar is dedicated to the Presentation of Mary in the Temple and displays the coat of arms of the Boscarelli Sturzo family.
The third altar is dedicated to the Christ at the Column and supports a wooden statue made in 1592 by the artist Paolo Nigro.
The Church of Santa Maria del Monte preserves the Madonna di Conadomini icon. The panel arrived in Caltagirone in the first half of the 1200s. It is painted on both sides and depicts the Byzantine image of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the Child Jesus in her arms. On the back, there is a depiction of the Dead Christ rising from the tomb, with the wood of the cross behind him.
