Ragusa

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento (Most Blessed Sacrament), to the right of the main apse is marvellous, a veritable triumph of colours and materials. Colourful elements welcome worshippers at the entrance and form the basis of the entire chapel’s decoration.

zoom La cappella del Santissimo Sacramento
La cappella del Santissimo Sacramento

The polychrome polychrome altar immediately attracts the attention of passers-by. Red, green, white and gold are featured in the aedicula , where the painting of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus was placed in the 19th century.
The wall decorations, the stuccoes , the gold and the blue background embellish the interior of the chapel and transport worshippers to a supernatural dimension.

foto dettaglio cappella ss sacramento foto dettaglio cappella ss sacramento
Using relief, the chapel recounts some of the most important moments in Christ’s life such as the Supper at Emmaus, carved in marble and inserted in the lower part of the altar in a medallion, and other stucco depictions placed at the sides of the altar.
These show the Offering of Melchizedek, a very important figure in the Old Testament who offers bread and wine to God in the name of Abraham, and the Last Supper in imitation of the famous fresco by Leonardo da Vinci, now kept in the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan.

One city, three sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The interior and its masterpieces

The colours of the cathedral

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A city in colour

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

Discovering the mother church

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Some masterpieces

A hall for the feasts

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A triumph of colour

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

From International Gothic to present day

Feasting in Palazzolo

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Many owners, one palace

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A miniature city

The disastrous earthquake

Some prestigious works

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Burgos crucifix

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A symbol for the town

The internal colours

A new site for a new city

The chocolate of Modica

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Searching for colour

A half-Baroque church

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

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

Wonderful quick decorations

The theatre of taste

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A prominent church

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

An eagle-shaped city

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Baroque town by the sea

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Feast days

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

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Norman apses

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

A new site for a new church

Between white and black

Two illustrious patron saints

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

A talking palace

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The wall comes to life

A square as the heart of the city

A museum to save a tradition

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

A long reconstruction

The Staircase of Angels

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The church of Carmine

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

A feast only for Scicli

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A small room with a golden entrance

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The city of museums

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A colourful floor

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

New roads for Catania

One city, two sites

The two churches