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 majestic and luminous church

A miniature city

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Feasting in Palazzolo

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Wonderful quick decorations

A feast only for Scicli

The city of museums

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Many owners, one palace

Searching for colour

The Staircase of Angels

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The internal colours

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

An eagle-shaped city

From International Gothic to present day

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

A prominent church

Between white and black

A museum to save a tradition

A symbol for the town

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

One city, two sites

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

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

The wall comes to life

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The interior and its masterpieces

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The colours of the cathedral

The church of Carmine

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

The theatre of taste

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

A new site for a new city

The chocolate of Modica

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A hall for the feasts

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Prominent façade

Discovering the mother church

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A small room with a golden entrance

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

Some masterpieces

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new site for a new church

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A long reconstruction

A triumph of colour

A colourful floor

Norman apses

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Burgos crucifix

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Some prestigious works

One city, three sites

The disastrous earthquake

A talking palace

New roads for Catania

Two illustrious patron saints

The two churches

A city in colour

The Baroque town by the sea

Feast days

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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