Modica

The chocolate of Modica

A visit to Modica means a visit to its churches, walks along Via Umberto and tasting chocolate . Cioccolato di ModicaCocoa has very ancient and not very Sicilian origins. The first people to work the seeds were the Aztecs in distant Central America. It was later in the 16th century that the Spaniards brought the tasty seeds to the County of Modica . What makes Modica’s chocolate unique is its special cold processing, which gives it a grainy and irregular appearance. The first flavours to be added were vanilla and cinnamon, and over the centuries new ones were experimented with. Over the years the techniques were changed and refined, but the master chocolatiers of Modica did not want to modify the original recipe or process in any way.
This means that we can still taste the ancient flavours of an ancient tradition today. In 2003 the city’s twenty producers formed the Modica Chocolate Consortium in the aim of protecting and defining the processing and production techniques.

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A long reconstruction

Some masterpieces

A majestic and luminous church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A city in colour

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A small room with a golden entrance

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

The colours of the cathedral

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Limestone, the colour of harmony

One city, three sites

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Burgos crucifix

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The two churches

The church of Carmine

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A new site for a new church

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Prominent façade

Feasting in Palazzolo

Searching for colour

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

From International Gothic to present day

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

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A new site for a new city

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A feast only for Scicli

Norman apses

Feast days

A prominent church

An eagle-shaped city

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A talking palace

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

A hall for the feasts

A colourful floor

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Staircase of Angels

A half-Baroque church

A triumph of colour

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Baroque town by the sea

The city of museums

The theatre of taste

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Discovering the mother church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Many owners, one palace

A square as the heart of the city

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Between white and black

Some prestigious works

The chocolate of Modica

The wall comes to life

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The internal colours

The disastrous earthquake

The Maiolica of the staircase

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The interior and its masterpieces

A museum to save a tradition

Wonderful quick decorations

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

A symbol for the town

One city, two sites

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

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

New roads for Catania

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

Two illustrious patron saints

A miniature city

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca