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 Santa Chiara

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Two illustrious patron saints

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A hall for the feasts

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The city of museums

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

Some masterpieces

The Burgos crucifix

A symbol for the town

A colourful floor

The chocolate of Modica

Searching for colour

The Baroque town by the sea

A miniature city

The wall comes to life

A talking palace

A prominent church

A feast only for Scicli

A half-Baroque church

A long reconstruction

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

New roads for Catania

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Feast days

The interior and its masterpieces

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

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

Many owners, one palace

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

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

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

From International Gothic to present day

A square as the heart of the city

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The church of Carmine

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A majestic and luminous church

A city in colour

Prominent façade

One city, three sites

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

The internal colours

One city, two sites

Discovering the mother church

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The theatre of taste

Some prestigious works

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

An eagle-shaped city

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Norman apses

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Staircase of Angels

A museum to save a tradition

The two churches

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

A new site for a new city

Wonderful quick decorations

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Between white and black

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The colours of the cathedral

A triumph of colour

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A new site for a new church

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A small room with a golden entrance

Feasting in Palazzolo

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe