Scicli

A triumph of colour

The entrance to San Giovanni Evangelista (St. John the Evangelist) is through a long, narrow and dark antechamber which gives onto a large, wide and bright oval hall. The colourful interior decorations embellish and characterise the room. Blue features prominently, like a ribbon tying the space together. The walls are embellished with golden stucco decorations that shine and sparkle whenever a ray of sunshine hits them.

ingresso verso altare dettaglio finestre, trabeazione, putti
The church is also made brighter by the large windows that open onto the vault, whose colourful glass filters yellow, green and blue light.

dettaglio finestre, trabeazione, putti dettaglio finestra

 A wonderful 19th-century fresco with the Glory of St. Benedict completes the vault, and a whirlwind of angels welcomes the saint among the blessed. Once in the final part of the church, the area of the apse is a triumph of gold; a brilliant decoration illuminates the space reserved for liturgical services. At the end, a beautiful aedicula , behind the altar guards the statue of Our Lady of Sorrows, which completes the decorative display.

Zoom zona dell’ abside
zona dell’ abside

La volta La statua della cappella

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A feast only for Scicli

The two churches

The wall comes to life

The colours of the cathedral

Norman apses

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

A city in colour

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

A small room with a golden entrance

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A new site for a new city

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Many owners, one palace

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

A talking palace

Some masterpieces

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A triumph of colour

A prominent church

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

From International Gothic to present day

A half-Baroque church

Prominent façade

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

A square as the heart of the city

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Searching for colour

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

An eagle-shaped city

Between white and black

A hall for the feasts

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The Maiolica of the staircase

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

A miniature city

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The disastrous earthquake

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A colourful floor

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The Baroque town by the sea

Two illustrious patron saints

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

One city, three sites

A long reconstruction

The chocolate of Modica

Some prestigious works

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

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

The church of Carmine

The city of museums

A majestic and luminous church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

The Staircase of Angels

Feast days

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The internal colours

A museum to save a tradition

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Discovering the mother church

The Burgos crucifix

A new site for a new church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

One city, two sites

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

Wonderful quick decorations

Feasting in Palazzolo

Connections with other UNESCO sites

New roads for Catania