Introduction to Val di Noto

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Baroque is a particular cultural and artistic period that began in Rome in the early 17th century before spreading across Europe, in various forms, in the second half of the century.
The negative connotation attributed to Baroque by 18th-century critics, who also coined the term, was aimed at artists who in their architecture and painting had moved away from the principles of harmony, beauty and functionality found in Renaissance culture.
18th-century theorists saw and recognised in Baroque art bizarre, eccentric and fantastic elements in stark contrast with the harmony derived from the rigorous application of geometric, proportional principles used in the Renaissance.
Baroque was considered in a more positive light from the end of the 19th century, a period that recognised the importance in art of a new perception of space, with its symbolic and scenographic force that was widely accepted by both the aristocratic and less affluent classes.

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A museum to save a tradition

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The internal colours

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Burgos crucifix

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A small room with a golden entrance

The city of museums

From International Gothic to present day

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

Prominent façade

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Maiolica of the staircase

Wonderful quick decorations

The disastrous earthquake

Discovering the mother church

Norman apses

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

Two illustrious patron saints

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Feast days

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

A talking palace

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

A square as the heart of the city

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A hall for the feasts

The two churches

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

New roads for Catania

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A half-Baroque church

A new site for a new church

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Feasting in Palazzolo

A symbol for the town

A long reconstruction

Some prestigious works

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

Between white and black

An eagle-shaped city

A miniature city

One city, three sites

The church of Carmine

Many owners, one palace

A feast only for Scicli

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

The Baroque town by the sea

Searching for colour

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A new site for a new city

One city, two sites

Some masterpieces

The Staircase of Angels

A city in colour

A triumph of colour

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A majestic and luminous church

The wall comes to life

The theatre of taste

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A colourful floor

The interior and its masterpieces

The chocolate of Modica