Ragusa

One city, two sites

The town of Ragusa Ibla is built across three different hilly areas separated by a deep valley.
The town is the union of Ibla and Ragusa: Ibla was founded by the Sicels, before the birth of Christ. Ragusa, on the other hand, has much less ancient origins and is linked to the tragic earthquake.foto città nel complesso Following the earthquake, when deciding where to rebuild the town, no agreement could be reached.
The population was divided into two factions: the sangiorgiari suggested the old site; the sangiovannari sought to rebuild it elsewhere.
The former were aristocrats of very old lineage who lived in the parish of San Giorgio (St. George); the Sangiovannari, on the other hand, who lived outside the walls in the district of San Giovanni (St. John), were made up of the poor and the nouveau riche. Neither side wanted to give in, so two independent towns were built. foto IblaIbla was rebuilt on a lower hill than Ragusa and the old road layout was maintained.
Ragusa was planned perfectly with a system of roads that crossed at right angles.
Though rebuilt independently and autonomously from one another, Ragusa and Ibla share the style of Baroque art.
Over time the clear division was lost and the inhabitants began to live in the intermediate space, but it was not until 1926 that Ibla and Ragusa were reunited.foto ragusa

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A colourful floor

A city in colour

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A square as the heart of the city

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

The chocolate of Modica

A half-Baroque church

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Staircase of Angels

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

One city, two sites

The two churches

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

Two illustrious patron saints

One city, three sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A miniature city

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

The city of museums

From International Gothic to present day

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

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

New roads for Catania

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

Some prestigious works

A long reconstruction

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The colours of the cathedral

A prominent church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A feast only for Scicli

Prominent façade

Discovering the mother church

A talking palace

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The theatre of taste

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The wall comes to life

A hall for the feasts

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The interior and its masterpieces

Norman apses

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The internal colours

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A small room with a golden entrance

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Between white and black

An eagle-shaped city

The Burgos crucifix

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

A majestic and luminous church

A triumph of colour

A symbol for the town

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Baroque town by the sea

Searching for colour

The disastrous earthquake

Feast days

Many owners, one palace

Feasting in Palazzolo

Some masterpieces

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new site for a new church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The church of Carmine

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A museum to save a tradition

A new site for a new city

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento