Ragusa

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giovanni Battista

hearing
Angelic song

On 24 June 1858 the church resounded with festivities.
The great organ was inaugurated, with more than three thousand pipes and a gigantic wooden cantoria (a structure built to house the choir). We can only imagine the sweet sound that accompanied that moment.
The organ still works today and can be found in the right chapel before the transept, while the cantoria was placed above the main portal.
For centuries, music and angelic songs have been an integral part of liturgical functions.
foto organo foto organo nella prima cappella di destra del transetto

touch
Pietra pece, a special stone

The dark, petroleum-infused pietra pece of the floor smells like petrol and leaves a coat of grease on your fingers like oil!
This unique rock is widely used because its particular composition can make a room resistant to humidity.

sight
Diversity makes everything more special

The two-tone interior makes the cathedral of San Giovanni Battista (St. John the Baptist) wonderful. The white walls combined with the black floor enhances both elements and adds liveliness to the environment.
Once inside the church of St. John the Baptist, our sense of sight is also stimulated by the colourful altars that crowd the side naves.
Red, green, white, gold, and even the black of the balustrades stimulate the visitor’s eye.

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the Benedictine Monastery and San NicoIò l’Arena

Two illustrious patron saints

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the staircase of Santa Maria del Monte

The senses tell the story of the church of Santa Maria del Carmelo

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A new site for a new city

The role of the religious orders in rebuilding the Val di Noto

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Burgos crucifix

The city of museums

The wall comes to life

A museum to save a tradition

Many owners, one palace

A square as the heart of the city

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Between white and black

A long reconstruction

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Giovanni Evangelista

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Searching for colour

Some masterpieces

A talking palace

The internal colours

One city, two sites

A majestic and luminous church

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the Badia di Sant’Agata

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A new site for a new church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

From the contrast of the exterior to the internal jubilation of colours

The Baroque town by the sea

The chocolate of Modica

Church of San Giuliano (St. Julian) on Via dei Crociferi: reconstruction

Norman apses

A prominent church

The theatre of taste

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Wonderful quick decorations

Some prestigious works

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A colourful floor

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

From International Gothic to present day

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Staircase of Angels

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Freedom of worship and the role of the Catholic Church in the diffusion of Baroque

A miniature city

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell the Mother Church of San Nicolò and of the Santissimo Salvatore

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

New roads for Catania

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Prominent façade

The interior and its masterpieces

The colours of the cathedral

A small room with a golden entrance

Discovering the mother church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Giuliano ai Crociferi

Feast days

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The disastrous earthquake

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

One city, three sites

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giovanni Battista

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Connections with other UNESCO sites

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A symbol for the town

The two churches

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A city in colour