Modica

From International Gothic to present day

interno chiesa dall’ingresso verso l’altareThe interior of the church of Carmine features a classic Sicilian maiolica floor paired with a snow white wall with some architectural elements in relief such as capitals , arches, columns and the trabeation .
Their combination produces plays of light and shadow, achieved thanks to the rays of sunlight filtering through the windows. The altars, paintings such as the panel of St. Albert and the sculptural complex of the Annunciation add colour to and illuminate the church of Carmine. The white wooden structure behind the main altar is wonderful, embellished with golden stuccoes in the centre of which is the Madonna and Child.
foto dettaglio trabeazione foto dettaglio trabeazione
An astonishing discovery was made a few years ago: to the right of the apse , hidden in the wall, was the entrance to a side chapel of medieval, late-Gothic times. Traces remain of its ancient decoration and the funerary room beneath the floor.
struttura dietro l’altare

Wonderful quick decorations

The city of museums

A new site for a new city

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A Nobel Prize in Modica

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A feast only for Scicli

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Searching for colour

A prominent church

The theatre of taste

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A museum to save a tradition

Some prestigious works

One city, two sites

A city in colour

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A symbol for the town

New roads for Catania

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A small room with a golden entrance

Prominent façade

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

The wall comes to life

A talking palace

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The two churches

The colours of the cathedral

The Staircase of Angels

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A triumph of colour

A colourful floor

The interior and its masterpieces

A long reconstruction

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

From International Gothic to present day

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

The chocolate of Modica

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A square as the heart of the city

A miniature city

The Burgos crucifix

The disastrous earthquake

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

One city, three sites

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Baroque town by the sea

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

A hall for the feasts

Norman apses

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

Many owners, one palace

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

A majestic and luminous church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A new site for a new church

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Discovering the mother church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Feasting in Palazzolo

Between white and black

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Feast days

Some masterpieces

The internal colours

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

St. Sebastian, so much work!

An eagle-shaped city

Two illustrious patron saints