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 senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Norman apses

A museum to save a tradition

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Baroque town by the sea

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The theatre of taste

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The city of museums

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A colourful floor

A talking palace

Many owners, one palace

A half-Baroque church

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A prominent church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Some prestigious works

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Two illustrious patron saints

A city in colour

The Burgos crucifix

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Wonderful quick decorations

Discovering the mother church

Between white and black

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

The church of Carmine

From International Gothic to present day

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

New roads for Catania

A new site for a new church

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

A symbol for the town

Some masterpieces

One city, two sites

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

The Staircase of Angels

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A triumph of colour

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

The wall comes to life

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

The interior and its masterpieces

Feast days

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The disastrous earthquake

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A square as the heart of the city

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The chocolate of Modica

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

The internal colours

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The two churches

A small room with a golden entrance

A feast only for Scicli

An eagle-shaped city

Searching for colour

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A new site for a new city

The colours of the cathedral

A hall for the feasts

Feasting in Palazzolo

A long reconstruction

A miniature city

One city, three sites

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Modica, a city with ancient origins