Introduction to Val di Noto

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

After the tragic earthquake, the Val di Noto rose from its ashes like a phoenix to be reborn stronger and more beautiful than before.
The commitment of the religious orders to educate a modern generation of artists in the cultural and artistic knowledge of Baroque Rome was crucial in overcoming ancient conceptions and initiating a momentous transformation.
Studies undertaken by young clerics in the rich Roman libraries, the interest in Rome, and observation of the typical architecture of the Counter-Reformation gave rise to a synthesis of figurative elements which set Sicilian Baroque in motion.
In Sicily, Roman artistic influences replaced Spanish cultural dependence. By the hand of specialised workers, the new spirit of the era was inaugurated, not only in religious architecture but also in civic buildings, too. Sicilian Baroque combined the technical knowledge of local culture with the great dynamics of Roman Baroque.

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A feast only for Scicli

The colours of the cathedral

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

Many owners, one palace

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A miniature city

A talking palace

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The internal colours

One city, three sites

A half-Baroque church

Some prestigious works

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

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The Staircase of Angels

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

An eagle-shaped city

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The church of Carmine

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Feasting in Palazzolo

A new site for a new city

The disastrous earthquake

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Prominent façade

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A new site for a new church

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The wall comes to life

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

A long reconstruction

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The chocolate of Modica

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Between white and black

One city, two sites

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Burgos crucifix

The theatre of taste

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A prominent church

A triumph of colour

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

The interior and its masterpieces

A majestic and luminous church

Feast days

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Searching for colour

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Discovering the mother church

The city of museums

The Maiolica of the staircase

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Baroque town by the sea

Norman apses

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A colourful floor

A city in colour

A symbol for the town

A museum to save a tradition

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

From International Gothic to present day

A square as the heart of the city

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Some masterpieces