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.

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Prominent façade

A museum to save a tradition

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A long reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

The two churches

Feasting in Palazzolo

An eagle-shaped city

A triumph of colour

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

The Burgos crucifix

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Some masterpieces

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Baroque town by the sea

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Feast days

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The church of Carmine

A prominent church

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A new site for a new city

A square as the heart of the city

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

One city, three sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Discovering the mother church

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

Searching for colour

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A miniature city

The Staircase of Angels

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A majestic and luminous church

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

The wall comes to life

Two illustrious patron saints

A feast only for Scicli

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The city of museums

From International Gothic to present day

Between white and black

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

The internal colours

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Wonderful quick decorations

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The chocolate of Modica

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The theatre of taste

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

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The interior and its masterpieces

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

One city, two sites

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A new site for a new church

A talking palace

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A city in colour

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

A half-Baroque church

Norman apses

Many owners, one palace

The colours of the cathedral

A hall for the feasts

A colourful floor

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Some prestigious works