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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

One city, two sites

Many owners, one palace

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A square as the heart of the city

A new site for a new church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Maiolica of the staircase

Two illustrious patron saints

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

A half-Baroque church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The chocolate of Modica

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The disastrous earthquake

The theatre of taste

A majestic and luminous church

The wall comes to life

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A colourful floor

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A long reconstruction

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

Some masterpieces

The colours of the cathedral

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

A miniature city

A museum to save a tradition

The Burgos crucifix

A hall for the feasts

Feast days

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

Discovering the mother church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The two churches

From International Gothic to present day

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A triumph of colour

One city, three sites

Some prestigious works

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A small room with a golden entrance

The interior and its masterpieces

A prominent church

Prominent façade

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Norman apses

The church of Carmine

A talking palace

A city in colour

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Baroque town by the sea

Wonderful quick decorations

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Searching for colour

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The internal colours

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

A new site for a new city

The city of museums

Between white and black

New roads for Catania

The character of Badia Sant’Agata