Noto

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Thanks to a recent restoration, Palazzo Nicolaci can be appreciated in all its original beauty and is one of the symbols of Sicilian Baroque art. It was the city’s noble residence of the Nicolaci family and has four storeys: the ground floor was used for stables and storing food; the first floor was the piano nobile (main floor) where the Baron lived; the rest of the family stayed on the upper floor, and the attic was for the servants. portale d’accesso con balconeThe entrance portal is framed by two columns and is surmounted by a large balcony.
The façade is a street theatre reminiscent of the theatre of Sicilian puppets because of the masks and characters carved into it.
Anyone passing through Via Corrado Nicolaci is in awe of the incredible corbels . Five for each balcony, they depict mythological figures including mermaids, sphinxes and horses. Each corbel is richly decorated, almost as though in fear of leaving even the smallest of spaces free.
Such attention to decoration can be found in the cornices around the windows; they feature plant elements, human faces and masks.
As for the material used, it is the typical stone of Noto which turns a honey colour when hit by the sun and emits endless colours depending on the time of day.

balcone, con finestra con sirene dettaglio sirena

A talking palace

From International Gothic to present day

A new site for a new church

The church of Carmine

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A small room with a golden entrance

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The colours of the cathedral

New roads for Catania

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Baroque town by the sea

Feast days

Some masterpieces

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The chocolate of Modica

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A city in colour

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The theatre of taste

An eagle-shaped city

Searching for colour

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A long reconstruction

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Norman apses

Many owners, one palace

The disastrous earthquake

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The wall comes to life

One city, two sites

The interior and its masterpieces

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Wonderful quick decorations

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A miniature city

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A symbol for the town

The Maiolica of the staircase

The internal colours

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The city of museums

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A half-Baroque church

A new site for a new city

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

A majestic and luminous church

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Staircase of Angels

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

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

The Burgos crucifix

A square as the heart of the city

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Feasting in Palazzolo

Prominent façade

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Some prestigious works

Two illustrious patron saints

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

One city, three sites

The two churches

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A prominent church

Discovering the mother church

A feast only for Scicli

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Between white and black

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A colourful floor

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