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).

Wonderful quick decorations

A city in colour

An eagle-shaped city

A square as the heart of the city

A miniature city

The colours of the cathedral

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Many owners, one palace

A colourful floor

A small room with a golden entrance

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

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

The Baroque town by the sea

The theatre of taste

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Prominent façade

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A triumph of colour

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Some masterpieces

The city of museums

A majestic and luminous church

One city, two sites

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

The Burgos crucifix

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

New roads for Catania

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The two churches

Feast days

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

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Norman apses

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The chocolate of Modica

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Searching for colour

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The church of Carmine

A prominent church

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The internal colours

Feasting in Palazzolo

From International Gothic to present day

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The wall comes to life

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Between white and black

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

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

A talking palace

A new site for a new city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

One city, three sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Some prestigious works

A half-Baroque church

Two illustrious patron saints

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A hall for the feasts

A symbol for the town

The interior and its masterpieces

Discovering the mother church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The disastrous earthquake

A long reconstruction

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Staircase of Angels

A museum to save a tradition