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 church of Carmine

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

New roads for Catania

A long reconstruction

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Baroque town by the sea

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Feasting in Palazzolo

Feast days

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

From International Gothic to present day

Norman apses

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The two churches

A hall for the feasts

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Prominent façade

The internal colours

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

One city, three sites

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

Searching for colour

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The disastrous earthquake

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A miniature city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Maiolica of the staircase

Some prestigious works

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A new site for a new church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A city in colour

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Many owners, one palace

A museum to save a tradition

Discovering the mother church

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The theatre of taste

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

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

A majestic and luminous church

A colourful floor

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A triumph of colour

A square as the heart of the city

The colours of the cathedral

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The wall comes to life

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The Staircase of Angels

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

One city, two sites

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Some masterpieces

A new site for a new city

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

Wonderful quick decorations

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Two illustrious patron saints

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A small room with a golden entrance

A talking palace

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

A prominent church

Between white and black

An eagle-shaped city

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A symbol for the town

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

The Burgos crucifix

The city of museums

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords