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).

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Staircase of Angels

Feast days

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

One city, two sites

Many owners, one palace

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A colourful floor

A prominent church

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

The church of Carmine

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

The chocolate of Modica

Some prestigious works

A museum to save a tradition

Feasting in Palazzolo

The Baroque town by the sea

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A long reconstruction

A hall for the feasts

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A triumph of colour

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Two illustrious patron saints

A new site for a new city

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

One city, three sites

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A miniature city

A small room with a golden entrance

Prominent façade

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Some masterpieces

The wall comes to life

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The internal colours

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

Discovering the mother church

Searching for colour

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

The disastrous earthquake

From International Gothic to present day

The interior and its masterpieces

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Norman apses

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

Between white and black

The city of museums

A new site for a new church

A feast only for Scicli

The theatre of taste

A half-Baroque church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

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

A square as the heart of the city

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

An eagle-shaped city

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

New roads for Catania

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

A city in colour

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The two churches

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

A symbol for the town

A majestic and luminous church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A talking palace