Ragusa

Searching for colour

The interior of the church of San Giuseppe (St. Joseph) is a single large oval-shaped room.
The Friar Alberto Maria di San Giovanni Battista most likely took inspiration for its floor plan from the church of Santa Chiara (St. Claire) in Noto.
The architect friar had two entrances built, one from Piazza Pola and the other directly from the convent for access by the nuns. As you enter the church you are surprised and overwhelmed by its very high ceiling, an effect achieved thanks to the majestic dome and the four windows that fill the space with light.
Ingresso verso l’altare foto dal basso verso l’alto della cupola
As for the walls, they were left white with some golden stucco decoration.
This pallor, however, is immediately broken up by four colourful altars placed along the walls, the painting on the high altar and the vault fresco.

zoom affresco della volta
affresco della volta

The painting with the Holy Family was created by painter Matteo Battaglia from Ragusa and the fresco with the Glory of St. Benedict is the work of Sebastiano Lo Monaco, an artist from Catania.
To add colour to the room, and to create a strong contrast with the white walls, black pietra pece was used for the floor, which features a white limestone decoration.
uno degli altari sulle pareti pavimento

A long reconstruction

Two illustrious patron saints

A talking palace

A hall for the feasts

Feast days

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A museum to save a tradition

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The chocolate of Modica

The Maiolica of the staircase

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A majestic and luminous church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Some prestigious works

From International Gothic to present day

The church of Carmine

Discovering the mother church

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

Between white and black

A city in colour

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A new site for a new city

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Prominent façade

The theatre of taste

The disastrous earthquake

Wonderful quick decorations

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A new site for a new church

Norman apses

Feasting in Palazzolo

A colourful floor

A symbol for the town

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

An eagle-shaped city

A triumph of colour

A miniature city

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The internal colours

Searching for colour

One city, three sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

One city, two sites

The Baroque town by the sea

Many owners, one palace

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Burgos crucifix

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A small room with a golden entrance

A half-Baroque church

A prominent church

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The city of museums

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Staircase of Angels

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

The wall comes to life

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The two churches

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

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

A feast only for Scicli

The interior and its masterpieces

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A square as the heart of the city

Some masterpieces

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras