Ragusa

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

taste
A freshwater spring

Not far from the church of San Giuseppe (St. Joseph) is Porta Walter. It was built in medieval times and allowed people to leave the city and visit the lush green valley of Santa Domenica.
From here they would reach a spring where inhabitants rushed to quench their thirst and collect as much water as possible, especially on long, sweltering summer days!

sight
A question of perspective!

Depending on the time of day, the levels of the façade and its various elements create a unique and fascinating combination of light effects.
The plays of light and shadow change from hour to hour.
The endless chiaroscuro effects uncover and hide new details each time.

touch
Such rich materials!

The church brings out the diversity of the materials and the infinite possibilities for their use. As a matter of fact, the glass used in the large windows of the vault was also used to decorate the altars with a process that imitates marble.
Used for the worshippers’ seating, wood also proves to be an excellent material for beautiful wooden sculptures such as the Madonna near the altar.
madonna in legno altare

Wonderful quick decorations

Some masterpieces

The Staircase of Angels

The theatre of taste

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

The internal colours

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Two illustrious patron saints

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

The Baroque town by the sea

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The two churches

One city, two sites

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Burgos crucifix

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

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

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

A colourful floor

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

A long reconstruction

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Feasting in Palazzolo

An eagle-shaped city

A feast only for Scicli

The interior and its masterpieces

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Between white and black

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Norman apses

A miniature city

A triumph of colour

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The disastrous earthquake

The wall comes to life

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Discovering the mother church

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A small room with a golden entrance

The Maiolica of the staircase

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The city of museums

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A talking palace

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Prominent façade

A city in colour

One city, three sites

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A new site for a new church

Many owners, one palace

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A symbol for the town

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

A museum to save a tradition

Some prestigious works

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The church of Carmine

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A majestic and luminous church

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A square as the heart of the city

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

A new site for a new city

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A prominent church

Feast days

From International Gothic to present day

Searching for colour

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The chocolate of Modica

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A half-Baroque church

Modica, a city with ancient origins