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).

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A new site for a new church

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

The wall comes to life

Prominent façade

The Staircase of Angels

A majestic and luminous church

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

A miniature city

Feast days

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

Between white and black

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

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

The interior and its masterpieces

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

A colourful floor

A half-Baroque church

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

From International Gothic to present day

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A long reconstruction

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A feast only for Scicli

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A prominent church

The disastrous earthquake

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Discovering the mother church

One city, three sites

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A triumph of colour

The city of museums

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The church of Carmine

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Norman apses

New roads for Catania

Feasting in Palazzolo

Many owners, one palace

Searching for colour

The two churches

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The internal colours

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

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The colours of the cathedral

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Some prestigious works

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The chocolate of Modica

A city in colour

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

A small room with a golden entrance

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The theatre of taste

One city, two sites

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Wonderful quick decorations

A talking palace

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Maiolica of the staircase

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A symbol for the town

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Some masterpieces

A new site for a new city

Two illustrious patron saints

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph