Ragusa

A talking palace

terzo balconeWhat makes Palazzo La Rocca so unique are its large corbels , below the balconies, three supporting each one. They tell their own story and amaze passers-by.
From Via Duomo the first balcony that we find is the balcony of the Cherubini (cherubs).
The second and third balconies are dedicated to music, where sculptures of a tenor mandola player and a flute player remind us that at that time music, bel canto and feasts were an essential part of aristocratic life.
il balcone con i suonatori di mandorla particolare il balcone con i suonatori di mandorla
il balcone con i suonatori di flauto particolare settimo balcone
The fourth balcony portrays a tender moment between mother and son. Then follows the balcony above the entrance door decorated with a central shell and plant decorations in the side corbels.
The sixth is the balcony of the Amorini, where three pairs of cupids are linked in a tender embrace.
The seventh balcony has a sculpted telamon that seems to support the full weight of the balcony all by itself.
Balcone sopra il portale foto settimo balcone ottavo balcone
The final balcony is the balcony of the Cavaliere (knight). It is surrounded by several characters.
On the left is a masked man, perhaps one of his soldiers or bodyguards, and on the right is a figure with a malevolent smile, which represents cunning; above is a large moustached man with a thick head of hair and two porters.
What a sight! Walking down Via Capitano Bocchieri is like going to the theatre.

Between white and black

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Staircase of Angels

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A talking palace

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

The interior and its masterpieces

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The internal colours

Some prestigious works

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The disastrous earthquake

The Baroque town by the sea

A square as the heart of the city

The city of museums

The theatre of taste

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A miniature city

Two illustrious patron saints

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Feast days

Some masterpieces

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A city in colour

Feasting in Palazzolo

A prominent church

New roads for Catania

Wonderful quick decorations

From International Gothic to present day

A new site for a new city

Discovering the mother church

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

One city, three sites

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A majestic and luminous church

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The wall comes to life

The two churches

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Burgos crucifix

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

Many owners, one palace

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A new site for a new church

A long reconstruction

A colourful floor

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Prominent façade

A feast only for Scicli

Norman apses

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A triumph of colour

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Searching for colour

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A hall for the feasts

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

The church of Carmine

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

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

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The chocolate of Modica

One city, two sites

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A symbol for the town

A museum to save a tradition