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 senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Discovering the mother church

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The church of Carmine

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Feast days

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A symbol for the town

The city of museums

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A small room with a golden entrance

One city, three sites

Some prestigious works

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Prominent façade

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

A square as the heart of the city

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

A colourful floor

From International Gothic to present day

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Searching for colour

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The colours of the cathedral

A hall for the feasts

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The two churches

The interior and its masterpieces

One city, two sites

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A half-Baroque church

The disastrous earthquake

The theatre of taste

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A prominent church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

Some masterpieces

The Burgos crucifix

The Baroque town by the sea

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A new site for a new city

Wonderful quick decorations

The chocolate of Modica

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

New roads for Catania

A new site for a new church

Many owners, one palace

Norman apses

A Nobel Prize in Modica

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A city in colour

A majestic and luminous church

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A long reconstruction

The Staircase of Angels

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The wall comes to life

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Between white and black

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

An eagle-shaped city

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A triumph of colour

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Feasting in Palazzolo

Two illustrious patron saints

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

A feast only for Scicli

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The internal colours

A talking palace

A miniature city