Modica

Many owners, one palace

foto palazzo salendo da via CalamenzanaPalazzo Tommasi Rosso is located on Corso Francesco Crispi, behind the Cathedral of San Giorgio (St. George), in the ancient district of Francavilla. It is an important testimony to the late Baroque architecture of Modica. Though the palace is named Napolino Tommasi Rosso, the family that commissioned the building was probably the Lorefice family.
In the second half of the 18th century, work began on a majestic two-storey palace with an internal courtyard and a rich, elaborate façade. The façade is symmetrical; the portal in the middle, with two windows on the sides, and three balconies with corbels on the second storey.

porzione del palazzo mascheroni mensoloni del balcone centrale del palazzo
The large portal is enclosed on the left and right by two columns, on which are carved two lion heads and from which hang two elegant cloths. The top is completed by an elegant protruding trabeation with a broken line, typical of Baroque architecture.

zoom colonna del grande portale
colonna del grande portale

The large corbels, five per balcony, are all richly decorated; the two lateral ones were embellished with plant motifs and the middle one features the classic masks of the late Sicilian Baroque palaces. The palace is an elegant building in the heart of the town that tells the story of a bygone era.
dettagli mensoloni

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A new site for a new city

A talking palace

A square as the heart of the city

A triumph of colour

Searching for colour

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Discovering the mother church

The Maiolica of the staircase

One city, two sites

A city in colour

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

One city, three sites

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The theatre of taste

The disastrous earthquake

The church of Carmine

The interior and its masterpieces

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

A hall for the feasts

A small room with a golden entrance

A half-Baroque church

A new site for a new church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The chocolate of Modica

A miniature city

The Burgos crucifix

A prominent church

A long reconstruction

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

Norman apses

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

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

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

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

The Staircase of Angels

The wall comes to life

A museum to save a tradition

Some masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The façade used as a puppet theatre

New roads for Catania

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A colourful floor

Wonderful quick decorations

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

The Baroque town by the sea

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

A majestic and luminous church

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

An eagle-shaped city

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

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

From International Gothic to present day

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Between white and black

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The colours of the cathedral

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Feast days

Prominent façade

Two illustrious patron saints

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The two churches

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The city of museums

A symbol for the town

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The internal colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A feast only for Scicli

Many owners, one palace

Some prestigious works

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A Nobel Prize in Modica

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph