Noto

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The city was rebuilt in the aftermath of the tragic earthquake, and when the significant powers, clergy and aristocracy asked for their palaces to be rebuilt, it was the Baron Asmundo who divided the land perfectly.
Since the heart of the city in the lower area was the Cathedral, that was where the new palaces were built.Palazzo Nicolaci salendo via Nicolaci verso la chiesa To the right of the church are the religious buildings, the Archbishop’s Palace and the monastery of the Holy Saviour; on the land to the left the residences of the most influential aristocratic families in Noto were built, Palazzo Landolina and Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata.
The latter was built between 1720 and 1750 by Don Giacomo Nicolaci , on the present day Via Corrado Nicolaci.
The question of who the architect was has never been resolved; there are many theories and few certainties. However, it remains one of the most interesting and surprising buildings in Noto for the exuberant corbels that support the balconies of the façade and the round-bottomed wrought iron railings.

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Feast days

The church of Carmine

Feasting in Palazzolo

A city in colour

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

One city, three sites

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Between white and black

The theatre of taste

Discovering the mother church

Searching for colour

The colours of the cathedral

A colourful floor

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The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

A new site for a new church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Wonderful quick decorations

A triumph of colour

A new site for a new city

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The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

New roads for Catania

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The disastrous earthquake

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

A prominent church

The city of museums

A long reconstruction

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A miniature city

A hall for the feasts

Prominent façade

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A feast only for Scicli

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The wall comes to life

Norman apses

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Maiolica of the staircase

The Burgos crucifix

The Baroque town by the sea

A symbol for the town

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The interior and its masterpieces

From International Gothic to present day

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Many owners, one palace

The two churches

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

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The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A museum to save a tradition

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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 talking palace

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

An eagle-shaped city

Two illustrious patron saints

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

Some masterpieces

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

A square as the heart of the city

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Staircase of Angels

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The chocolate of Modica

A small room with a golden entrance

The internal colours

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Some prestigious works

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A half-Baroque church

One city, two sites