Modica

From International Gothic to present day

interno chiesa dall’ingresso verso l’altareThe interior of the church of Carmine features a classic Sicilian maiolica floor paired with a snow white wall with some architectural elements in relief such as capitals , arches, columns and the trabeation .
Their combination produces plays of light and shadow, achieved thanks to the rays of sunlight filtering through the windows. The altars, paintings such as the panel of St. Albert and the sculptural complex of the Annunciation add colour to and illuminate the church of Carmine. The white wooden structure behind the main altar is wonderful, embellished with golden stuccoes in the centre of which is the Madonna and Child.
foto dettaglio trabeazione foto dettaglio trabeazione
An astonishing discovery was made a few years ago: to the right of the apse , hidden in the wall, was the entrance to a side chapel of medieval, late-Gothic times. Traces remain of its ancient decoration and the funerary room beneath the floor.
struttura dietro l’altare

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Many owners, one palace

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

Two illustrious patron saints

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A talking palace

The church of Carmine

The internal colours

The wall comes to life

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Norman apses

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Maiolica of the staircase

A miniature city

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

A half-Baroque church

One city, two sites

A small room with a golden entrance

Connections with other UNESCO sites

New roads for Catania

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A majestic and luminous church

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A colourful floor

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Prominent façade

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The theatre of taste

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A city in colour

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The chocolate of Modica

The Staircase of Angels

The two churches

The disastrous earthquake

A new site for a new church

The colours of the cathedral

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Searching for colour

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A feast only for Scicli

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Burgos crucifix

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

From International Gothic to present day

Between white and black

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A symbol for the town

Feast days

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The interior and its masterpieces

A triumph of colour

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Baroque town by the sea

A museum to save a tradition

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

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

Wonderful quick decorations

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The city of museums

Discovering the mother church

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

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

One city, three sites

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A square as the heart of the city

A new site for a new city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Some masterpieces

A long reconstruction

A hall for the feasts

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca