Modica

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

hearing
A small monumental organ

Organo santa maria del carmeloSongs and notes accompany the celebrations as they did centuries ago.
The organ is made of wood, small in size, and placed above the entrance. Made in the second half of the 18th century, it is one of the few still working.
The music of those who still know how to play the instrument enchants and accompanies the worshippers as they experience the moment of prayer more intensely, just like in the past.

touch
Watch what you paint on

Different materials, different techniques!
In order to paint on a canvas, panel or wall, an artist must master every technique. Painting on canvas means using a soft media with a fairly smooth surface.
Panels, like the one of St. Albert, are hard, made of wood and very irregular, and can have higher and lower sections. Finally, in order to fresco a wall, an artist must lay out an even base to achieve a smooth surface on which to place the colour.
For any painting to be successful, an artist must, therefore, have excellent knowledge of the technique and materials.

sight
A beautiful rose window

The church of Carmine is an example of medieval architecture where the central rose window is still intact.
The only one of its kind, it has a very unusual decoration.
Instead of the usual floral elements, the stonemason created mini-columns surmounted by small capitals, each one different from the other and ready to converge in the centre.
It is a wonderful piece of craftsmanship that demonstrates the skill of its unknown artist.

A talking palace

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

Wonderful quick decorations

A prominent church

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

Prominent façade

One city, three sites

A triumph of colour

New roads for Catania

A feast only for Scicli

A new site for a new church

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Baroque town by the sea

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A long reconstruction

A hall for the feasts

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

One city, two sites

A miniature city

The chocolate of Modica

The Maiolica of the staircase

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Many owners, one palace

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A square as the heart of the city

The church of Carmine

Feast days

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A half-Baroque church

A small room with a golden entrance

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Some masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A majestic and luminous church

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

The city of museums

Between white and black

Two illustrious patron saints

The two churches

A colourful floor

Norman apses

A city in colour

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Feasting in Palazzolo

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

The theatre of taste

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The internal colours

A symbol for the town

A museum to save a tradition

The Burgos crucifix

A new site for a new city

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The wall comes to life

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

An eagle-shaped city

Discovering the mother church

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The Staircase of Angels

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The colours of the cathedral

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

Searching for colour

Some prestigious works

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

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

From International Gothic to present day

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The interior and its masterpieces

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara