Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

sight
A panorama over Noto

The terrace of Santa Chiara will take your breath away! Partly because of all the stairs you have to climb, but more so for the spectacular view.
The whole city of Noto is below you, where infinite shades of colours embellish the landscape.
The green of the trees and surrounding hills; the blue of the sea that shines brightly in the distance, illuminated by the sun like a carpet of diamonds; and the golden cathedral of San Nicolò whose façade and round dome can be seen. A show of lights and colours!vista dalla terrazza di Santa Chiara

touch
The warm stucco

The gilded stuccoes on the ceiling of Santa Chiara (St. Claire) shine in the sunlight.
To the touch they will always be warmer than any other cold marble statue or sculpture, which are unable to retain heat.
Like stucco, wood will also always be warmer than this precious and ice-cold stone.

hearing
A gentle song

The nuns’singing was remarkable.
During religious services the church was filled with sweet voices and gentle songs alternating with delicate prayers.
If you return to the 18th century in your mind you can still hear the engrossed nuns singing Gloria del Signore (Glory of the Lord).

A symbol for the town

A square as the heart of the city

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Discovering the mother church

The Staircase of Angels

Wonderful quick decorations

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A new site for a new city

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

A prominent church

A majestic and luminous church

One city, three sites

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Feasting in Palazzolo

The disastrous earthquake

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A triumph of colour

Searching for colour

A museum to save a tradition

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Some masterpieces

Between white and black

The Burgos crucifix

A miniature city

The theatre of taste

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Prominent façade

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A colourful floor

A long reconstruction

A city in colour

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The wall comes to life

One city, two sites

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The church of Carmine

Many owners, one palace

The colours of the cathedral

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A half-Baroque church

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

From International Gothic to present day

A talking palace

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The two churches

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The chocolate of Modica

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

Two illustrious patron saints

Norman apses

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The internal colours

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

A new site for a new church

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A hall for the feasts

Feast days

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Some prestigious works

New roads for Catania

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A feast only for Scicli

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Baroque town by the sea

The city of museums

An eagle-shaped city

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A small room with a golden entrance