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

A triumph of colour

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

The Burgos crucifix

Two illustrious patron saints

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

The church of Carmine

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Between white and black

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A small room with a golden entrance

The internal colours

A symbol for the town

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

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

One city, three sites

A Nobel Prize in Modica

One city, two sites

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Wonderful quick decorations

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A prominent church

Some prestigious works

A square as the heart of the city

A new site for a new city

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Feast days

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The city of museums

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

An eagle-shaped city

The wall comes to life

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A talking palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Feasting in Palazzolo

Norman apses

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A majestic and luminous church

Some masterpieces

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A hall for the feasts

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A half-Baroque church

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

A miniature city

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Many owners, one palace

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

A long reconstruction

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A museum to save a tradition

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Discovering the mother church

A city in colour

New roads for Catania

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

Searching for colour

The Baroque town by the sea

The Maiolica of the staircase

The two churches

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A new site for a new church

A feast only for Scicli

From International Gothic to present day

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Staircase of Angels

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A colourful floor

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The colours of the cathedral

The chocolate of Modica

The theatre of taste

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers