Ragusa

A talking palace

terzo balconeWhat makes Palazzo La Rocca so unique are its large corbels , below the balconies, three supporting each one. They tell their own story and amaze passers-by.
From Via Duomo the first balcony that we find is the balcony of the Cherubini (cherubs).
The second and third balconies are dedicated to music, where sculptures of a tenor mandola player and a flute player remind us that at that time music, bel canto and feasts were an essential part of aristocratic life.
il balcone con i suonatori di mandorla particolare il balcone con i suonatori di mandorla
il balcone con i suonatori di flauto particolare settimo balcone
The fourth balcony portrays a tender moment between mother and son. Then follows the balcony above the entrance door decorated with a central shell and plant decorations in the side corbels.
The sixth is the balcony of the Amorini, where three pairs of cupids are linked in a tender embrace.
The seventh balcony has a sculpted telamon that seems to support the full weight of the balcony all by itself.
Balcone sopra il portale foto settimo balcone ottavo balcone
The final balcony is the balcony of the Cavaliere (knight). It is surrounded by several characters.
On the left is a masked man, perhaps one of his soldiers or bodyguards, and on the right is a figure with a malevolent smile, which represents cunning; above is a large moustached man with a thick head of hair and two porters.
What a sight! Walking down Via Capitano Bocchieri is like going to the theatre.

A city in colour

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A triumph of colour

The internal colours

The Staircase of Angels

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

A miniature city

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A prominent church

A colourful floor

Two illustrious patron saints

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A small room with a golden entrance

The two churches

Between white and black

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

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The church of Carmine

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

A majestic and luminous church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

New roads for Catania

Searching for colour

A long reconstruction

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A square as the heart of the city

One city, two sites

A new site for a new city

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A hall for the feasts

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Discovering the mother church

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Norman apses

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The interior and its masterpieces

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Some masterpieces

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The chocolate of Modica

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

A half-Baroque church

A talking palace

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A new site for a new church

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

From International Gothic to present day

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Prominent façade

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The theatre of taste

The disastrous earthquake

The Burgos crucifix

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

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

Some prestigious works

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

One city, three sites

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Feast days

Many owners, one palace

A symbol for the town

Wonderful quick decorations

A feast only for Scicli

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Baroque town by the sea

The wall comes to life

A museum to save a tradition