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

Some masterpieces

Discovering the mother church

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Feast days

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A long reconstruction

A talking palace

The disastrous earthquake

The Staircase of Angels

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

The interior and its masterpieces

Searching for colour

Some prestigious works

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

A triumph of colour

New roads for Catania

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The internal colours

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A square as the heart of the city

A half-Baroque church

The Burgos crucifix

Connections with other UNESCO sites

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Between white and black

Norman apses

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

An eagle-shaped city

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Feasting in Palazzolo

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A hall for the feasts

A miniature city

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

One city, two sites

From International Gothic to present day

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

A colourful floor

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A small room with a golden entrance

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Two illustrious patron saints

The city of museums

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

Wonderful quick decorations

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A prominent church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The church of Carmine

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The wall comes to life

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The colours of the cathedral

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A museum to save a tradition

The Baroque town by the sea

A city in colour

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

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

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

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

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A new site for a new city

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The theatre of taste

Prominent façade

A majestic and luminous church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

One city, three sites

A new site for a new church