Ragusa

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The church of San Giuseppe (St. Joseph) is located on the corner of Piazza Pola, near the Cathedral of San Giorgio (St. George) in Ibla.foto della piazza che inquadra la chiesa It was built after 1756, when the Benedictine nuns of the nearby convent, led by the abbess Battistina Maria Arezzo, bought the old dilapidated church of San Tommaso Apostolo (Thomas the Apostle). Thanks to them, reconstruction work began for the new church of San Giuseppe (St. Joseph).
The church building was built first, completed in 1774, followed by the demolition of the bell tower and the completion of the external and internal decorations. Foto facciata Initially the design for the new church was attributed to the great architect Rosario Gagliardi because of similarities with his other work, such as the Cathedral of San Giorgio (St. George) and the church of San Domenico (St. Dominic) in Noto. They all featured a horizontal division into three levels, with the final level containing the bell, but opinions have changed over the years and following more in-depth studies. Work by another architect, the Carmelite Friar Alberto Maria di San Giovanni Battista, who worked not only in Ragusa but also on the church of San Giovanni Evangelista (St. John the Evangelist) in Scicli, has a less innovative style than Gagliardi and is more similar to local artistic culture.
Well over seventy years later, Ibla and the Benedictine convent had a functioning new church, enjoyed by nuns and worshippers.
foto Facciata frontale

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Discovering the mother church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A talking palace

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The disastrous earthquake

Feast days

The Maiolica of the staircase

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

A museum to save a tradition

Searching for colour

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

New roads for Catania

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The colours of the cathedral

A prominent church

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

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A hall for the feasts

A half-Baroque church

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

The theatre of taste

One city, three sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A feast only for Scicli

A city in colour

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

One city, two sites

The interior and its masterpieces

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Some prestigious works

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Wonderful quick decorations

An eagle-shaped city

Norman apses

A miniature city

The chocolate of Modica

A majestic and luminous church

The internal colours

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The two churches

The wall comes to life

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

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

A new site for a new church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The church of Carmine

The Burgos crucifix

A triumph of colour

A new site for a new city

A symbol for the town

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Some masterpieces

From International Gothic to present day

A long reconstruction

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Between white and black

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A square as the heart of the city

The Baroque town by the sea

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A small room with a golden entrance

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A colourful floor

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The city of museums

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca