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 miniature city

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Some prestigious works

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Feast days

The city of museums

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Between white and black

The two churches

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

One city, two sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Two illustrious patron saints

Wonderful quick decorations

The internal colours

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A half-Baroque church

The interior and its masterpieces

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A triumph of colour

A hall for the feasts

A prominent church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Discovering the mother church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

An eagle-shaped city

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Searching for colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A long reconstruction

The Staircase of Angels

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Limestone, the colour of harmony

One city, three sites

A colourful floor

A feast only for Scicli

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

The chocolate of Modica

A symbol for the town

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A new site for a new church

The theatre of taste

A majestic and luminous church

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

A new site for a new city

Some masterpieces

Norman apses

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Baroque town by the sea

Many owners, one palace

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

A museum to save a tradition

A talking palace

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A city in colour

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The church of Carmine

A small room with a golden entrance

From International Gothic to present day

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Burgos crucifix

The colours of the cathedral

New roads for Catania

Prominent façade

The wall comes to life