Ragusa

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

hearing
Angelic song

On 24 June 1858 the church resounded with festivities.
The great organ was inaugurated, with more than three thousand pipes and a gigantic wooden cantoria (a structure built to house the choir). We can only imagine the sweet sound that accompanied that moment.
The organ still works today and can be found in the right chapel before the transept, while the cantoria was placed above the main portal.
For centuries, music and angelic songs have been an integral part of liturgical functions.
foto organo foto organo nella prima cappella di destra del transetto

touch
Pietra pece, a special stone

The dark, petroleum-infused pietra pece of the floor smells like petrol and leaves a coat of grease on your fingers like oil!
This unique rock is widely used because its particular composition can make a room resistant to humidity.

sight
Diversity makes everything more special

The two-tone interior makes the cathedral of San Giovanni Battista (St. John the Baptist) wonderful. The white walls combined with the black floor enhances both elements and adds liveliness to the environment.
Once inside the church of St. John the Baptist, our sense of sight is also stimulated by the colourful altars that crowd the side naves.
Red, green, white, gold, and even the black of the balustrades stimulate the visitor’s eye.

The city of museums

Some masterpieces

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

The disastrous earthquake

New roads for Catania

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A prominent church

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Baroque town by the sea

One city, two sites

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The colours of the cathedral

Feast days

Norman apses

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The two churches

The internal colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A new site for a new church

Many owners, one palace

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Burgos crucifix

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

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

A majestic and luminous church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Prominent façade

Feasting in Palazzolo

A small room with a golden entrance

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A miniature city

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Maiolica of the staircase

An eagle-shaped city

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A new site for a new city

A feast only for Scicli

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

The theatre of taste

A square as the heart of the city

A museum to save a tradition

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A hall for the feasts

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

The wall comes to life

From International Gothic to present day

A city in colour

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

One city, three sites

Wonderful quick decorations

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

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

Searching for colour

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The church of Carmine

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The interior and its masterpieces

Between white and black

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A talking palace

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The chocolate of Modica

Discovering the mother church

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A half-Baroque church

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

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A long reconstruction

Some prestigious works

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Staircase of Angels

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A colourful floor

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom