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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Maiolica of the staircase

The chocolate of Modica

A square as the heart of the city

A miniature city

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

One city, two sites

The Staircase of Angels

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A long reconstruction

A small room with a golden entrance

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A feast only for Scicli

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A city in colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A new site for a new city

From International Gothic to present day

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A talking palace

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Many owners, one palace

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The theatre of taste

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Feast days

A majestic and luminous church

The internal colours

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

One city, three sites

Between white and black

New roads for Catania

Norman apses

An eagle-shaped city

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

A museum to save a tradition

The disastrous earthquake

The interior and its masterpieces

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Discovering the mother church

A prominent church

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Burgos crucifix

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

Some masterpieces

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

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

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Feasting in Palazzolo

The two churches

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Two illustrious patron saints

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Baroque town by the sea

The city of museums

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Searching for colour

The church of Carmine

Prominent façade

The wall comes to life

A half-Baroque church

A symbol for the town

A colourful floor

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci