Ragusa

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

hearing
Angelic song

On 24 June 1858 the church resounded with festivities.
The great organ was inaugurated, with more than three thousand pipes and a gigantic wooden cantoria (a structure built to house the choir). We can only imagine the sweet sound that accompanied that moment.
The organ still works today and can be found in the right chapel before the transept, while the cantoria was placed above the main portal.
For centuries, music and angelic songs have been an integral part of liturgical functions.
foto organo foto organo nella prima cappella di destra del transetto

touch
Pietra pece, a special stone

The dark, petroleum-infused pietra pece of the floor smells like petrol and leaves a coat of grease on your fingers like oil!
This unique rock is widely used because its particular composition can make a room resistant to humidity.

sight
Diversity makes everything more special

The two-tone interior makes the cathedral of San Giovanni Battista (St. John the Baptist) wonderful. The white walls combined with the black floor enhances both elements and adds liveliness to the environment.
Once inside the church of St. John the Baptist, our sense of sight is also stimulated by the colourful altars that crowd the side naves.
Red, green, white, gold, and even the black of the balustrades stimulate the visitor’s eye.

A city in colour

The disastrous earthquake

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Baroque town by the sea

Many owners, one palace

One city, three sites

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Norman apses

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A museum to save a tradition

Between white and black

The theatre of taste

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

A new site for a new church

A half-Baroque church

A hall for the feasts

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A triumph of colour

Discovering the mother church

Some masterpieces

Prominent façade

The wall comes to life

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The internal colours

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

A majestic and luminous church

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

One city, two sites

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The façade used as a puppet theatre

From International Gothic to present day

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

A miniature city

The Staircase of Angels

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

Wonderful quick decorations

A new site for a new city

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

The Burgos crucifix

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A talking palace

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

An eagle-shaped city

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

New roads for Catania

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The colours of the cathedral

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Feast days

Feasting in Palazzolo

A feast only for Scicli

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

A colourful floor

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Searching for colour

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

Some prestigious works

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The two churches

A small room with a golden entrance

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

The city of museums

A long reconstruction

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A symbol for the town

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A square as the heart of the city

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A prominent church

The interior and its masterpieces

The chocolate of Modica

A new palace for the La Rocca lords