Ragusa

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

taste
A freshwater spring

Not far from the church of San Giuseppe (St. Joseph) is Porta Walter. It was built in medieval times and allowed people to leave the city and visit the lush green valley of Santa Domenica.
From here they would reach a spring where inhabitants rushed to quench their thirst and collect as much water as possible, especially on long, sweltering summer days!

sight
A question of perspective!

Depending on the time of day, the levels of the façade and its various elements create a unique and fascinating combination of light effects.
The plays of light and shadow change from hour to hour.
The endless chiaroscuro effects uncover and hide new details each time.

touch
Such rich materials!

The church brings out the diversity of the materials and the infinite possibilities for their use. As a matter of fact, the glass used in the large windows of the vault was also used to decorate the altars with a process that imitates marble.
Used for the worshippers’ seating, wood also proves to be an excellent material for beautiful wooden sculptures such as the Madonna near the altar.
madonna in legno altare

The city of museums

Some prestigious works

Some masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A miniature city

The Staircase of Angels

A new site for a new church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Searching for colour

The interior and its masterpieces

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Feast days

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The internal colours

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A half-Baroque church

The Maiolica of the staircase

A small room with a golden entrance

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Prominent façade

The theatre of taste

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

A colourful floor

The two churches

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

A majestic and luminous church

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A city in colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A square as the heart of the city

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Many owners, one palace

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Between white and black

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A long reconstruction

The wall comes to life

A hall for the feasts

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

The colours of the cathedral

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

One city, two sites

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Two illustrious patron saints

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The Burgos crucifix

Feasting in Palazzolo

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Discovering the mother church

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

A prominent church

The chocolate of Modica

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

An eagle-shaped city

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A triumph of colour

A Nobel Prize in Modica

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A museum to save a tradition

One city, three sites

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

New roads for Catania

The church of Carmine

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

From International Gothic to present day

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A symbol for the town

The Baroque town by the sea

A new site for a new city

The disastrous earthquake

A talking palace

Norman apses