Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

sight
A panorama over Noto

The terrace of Santa Chiara will take your breath away! Partly because of all the stairs you have to climb, but more so for the spectacular view.
The whole city of Noto is below you, where infinite shades of colours embellish the landscape.
The green of the trees and surrounding hills; the blue of the sea that shines brightly in the distance, illuminated by the sun like a carpet of diamonds; and the golden cathedral of San Nicolò whose façade and round dome can be seen. A show of lights and colours!vista dalla terrazza di Santa Chiara

touch
The warm stucco

The gilded stuccoes on the ceiling of Santa Chiara (St. Claire) shine in the sunlight.
To the touch they will always be warmer than any other cold marble statue or sculpture, which are unable to retain heat.
Like stucco, wood will also always be warmer than this precious and ice-cold stone.

hearing
A gentle song

The nuns’singing was remarkable.
During religious services the church was filled with sweet voices and gentle songs alternating with delicate prayers.
If you return to the 18th century in your mind you can still hear the engrossed nuns singing Gloria del Signore (Glory of the Lord).

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The two churches

Feast days

The chocolate of Modica

The Burgos crucifix

A long reconstruction

Some masterpieces

A museum to save a tradition

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A half-Baroque church

Between white and black

The disastrous earthquake

Discovering the mother church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The church of Carmine

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Maiolica of the staircase

Connections with other UNESCO sites

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The colours of the cathedral

A city in colour

Searching for colour

A miniature city

A square as the heart of the city

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

One city, three sites

Wonderful quick decorations

A talking palace

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A new site for a new city

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The interior and its masterpieces

An eagle-shaped city

A prominent church

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A majestic and luminous church

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

A symbol for the town

Feasting in Palazzolo

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

The wall comes to life

From International Gothic to present day

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

New roads for Catania

A hall for the feasts

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Some prestigious works

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

One city, two sites

A colourful floor

A feast only for Scicli

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Norman apses

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Two illustrious patron saints

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

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The city of museums

The Baroque town by the sea

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

The theatre of taste

A small room with a golden entrance

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The internal colours

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Staircase of Angels

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe