Introduction to Val di Noto

Fantasies of light and colour

Introduction to the route

The proposed educational route retraces the main events of the history of the Val di Noto.
Through the suggested itineraries it intends to lead younger children along their discovery of the eight towns: Catania, Militello in Val di Catania, Caltagirone, Ragusa, Modica, Scicli, Palazzolo Acreide and Noto.
This is a unique chance and opportunity to examine a territory rich in history.
Following the tragic earthquake of 1693, the towns of the Val di Noto were rebuilt with such homogeneity and richness from an artistic and architectural point of view that they were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The post-earthquake reconstruction is examined through many aspects that revolve around the brightness of paint colours, effects and plays on light and shadow that make the heritage a particularly fascinating and completely unusual sight. As well as featuring prominently in the lively character of the communities that inhabit these places, colour accompanies our gaze in a conscious interpretation of architectural shapes and unique landscapes, becoming an inspiration for artisanal production, too.
The children, then, can expect to experience many, powerful emotions.

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A small room with a golden entrance

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A Nobel Prize in Modica

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The city of museums

Some prestigious works

A majestic and luminous church

The two churches

Two illustrious patron saints

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

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The wall comes to life

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

Some masterpieces

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The Maiolica of the staircase

The colours of the cathedral

Discovering the mother church

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Feasting in Palazzolo

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

An eagle-shaped city

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Between white and black

A city in colour

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A triumph of colour

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

The theatre of taste

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Feast days

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Searching for colour

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A feast only for Scicli

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A miniature city

New roads for Catania

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Norman apses

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Prominent façade

A colourful floor

A new site for a new church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The internal colours

One city, two sites

The Staircase of Angels

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A hall for the feasts

The Baroque town by the sea

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

A museum to save a tradition

A talking palace

One city, three sites

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A new site for a new city

A long reconstruction

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

The interior and its masterpieces

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The disastrous earthquake

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A symbol for the town

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Wonderful quick decorations

From International Gothic to present day

A prominent church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Burgos crucifix

A half-Baroque church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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