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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

Searching for colour

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The internal colours

A square as the heart of the city

One city, three sites

The city of museums

From International Gothic to present day

Prominent façade

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The theatre of taste

An eagle-shaped city

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A symbol for the town

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

New roads for Catania

One city, two sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

Discovering the mother church

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new site for a new church

The disastrous earthquake

A talking palace

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A feast only for Scicli

Norman apses

The colours of the cathedral

Feasting in Palazzolo

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A long reconstruction

A new site for a new city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Many owners, one palace

A majestic and luminous church

A prominent church

The chocolate of Modica

Between white and black

The Baroque town by the sea

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Feast days

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Some masterpieces

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Two illustrious patron saints

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The interior and its masterpieces

A city in colour

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

The wall comes to life

A colourful floor

Wonderful quick decorations

The Burgos crucifix

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Some prestigious works

A half-Baroque church

The two churches

The church of Carmine

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A hall for the feasts

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A miniature city

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

The Staircase of Angels

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A triumph of colour

A small room with a golden entrance

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras