Church of Santa Caterina

The Church of Santa Caterina was founded in 1335 by Giovanni Majorana, a noble soldier of Erice, together with an adjoining hospital. Majorana's testament of 1339 provides early documentary evidence for the foundation, referring to the church and hospital he had established. Located close to the Church of San Francesco di Paola, Santa Caterina has long been closed to worship and is only rarely accessible to the public.

The small church consists of a single nave covered by a barrel vault supported by arches rising from the walls. Its most important surviving features are traces of fresco decoration dating from the 14th and 15th centuries, much of which was subsequently concealed beneath plaster. An older historical account specifically described Santa Caterina as noteworthy for its 15th-century frescoes, while surviving fragments include a representation of the Madonna nursing the Christ Child. Two altars are also recorded, dedicated to the Holy Crucifix and Saint Catherine, together with a polychrome stucco statue of the saint.

The church originally opened onto Via Rabatà, but this entrance was later walled up and a new doorway created on the opposite side, facing Via Vultaggio. In 1883 the State Property Office acquired the building for the Comune and it was placed under monumental protection by royal decree. Despite this, it was sold into private ownership by municipal decision in 1919. The Comune began legal proceedings to recover the property in 1965, although the later outcome of that dispute is not established by the sources currently available.