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.

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The wall comes to life

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A square as the heart of the city

The colours of the cathedral

Many owners, one palace

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A city in colour

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

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

Norman apses

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Staircase of Angels

A prominent church

A colourful floor

Wonderful quick decorations

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A new site for a new church

The internal colours

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A triumph of colour

Discovering the mother church

A feast only for Scicli

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

Some prestigious works

One city, three sites

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

A majestic and luminous church

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A long reconstruction

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A new site for a new city

One city, two sites

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Limestone, the colour of harmony

An eagle-shaped city

From International Gothic to present day

Feasting in Palazzolo

A miniature city

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Between white and black

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The disastrous earthquake

A small room with a golden entrance

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A hall for the feasts

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The city of museums

The Burgos crucifix

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The chocolate of Modica

The Baroque town by the sea

A half-Baroque church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A talking palace

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

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

A symbol for the town

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The theatre of taste

Some masterpieces

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A museum to save a tradition

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

Searching for colour

New roads for Catania

The interior and its masterpieces

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

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Feast days

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

The two churches