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 new palace for the La Rocca lords

A small room with a golden entrance

A talking palace

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

An eagle-shaped city

A miniature city

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Maiolica of the staircase

A hall for the feasts

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Burgos crucifix

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A square as the heart of the city

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

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

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

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Discovering the mother church

The wall comes to life

Between white and black

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The internal colours

A city in colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The city of museums

Norman apses

The chocolate of Modica

A museum to save a tradition

Feast days

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

From International Gothic to present day

Feasting in Palazzolo

Some masterpieces

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A new site for a new city

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Prominent façade

New roads for Catania

A colourful floor

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

One city, three sites

A prominent church

Some prestigious works

The interior and its masterpieces

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The colours of the cathedral

Wonderful quick decorations

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Searching for colour

A feast only for Scicli

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A majestic and luminous church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Two illustrious patron saints

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

A long reconstruction

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

One city, two sites

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

A triumph of colour

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Many owners, one palace

A symbol for the town

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

The disastrous earthquake

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

The Staircase of Angels

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

The two churches

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra