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

Many owners, one palace

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Some prestigious works

A new site for a new church

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Baroque town by the sea

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A talking palace

A symbol for the town

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The internal colours

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

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A feast only for Scicli

Two illustrious patron saints

A colourful floor

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

The Burgos crucifix

The chocolate of Modica

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A museum to save a tradition

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The church of Carmine

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

One city, two sites

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

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

A prominent church

A square as the heart of the city

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Between white and black

The disastrous earthquake

The city of museums

The wall comes to life

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Feasting in Palazzolo

The colours of the cathedral

Prominent façade

One city, three sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Searching for colour

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The interior and its masterpieces

The Maiolica of the staircase

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Discovering the mother church

From International Gothic to present day

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A triumph of colour

The theatre of taste

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

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

Some masterpieces

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A new site for a new city

A long reconstruction

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A miniature city

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A small room with a golden entrance

The two churches

A city in colour

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

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

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

A half-Baroque church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Norman apses

A hall for the feasts

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

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Staircase of Angels

An eagle-shaped city

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Feast days

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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