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.

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

Searching for colour

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Maiolica of the staircase

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A city in colour

The chocolate of Modica

The disastrous earthquake

A symbol for the town

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

A prominent church

New roads for Catania

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

A hall for the feasts

Between white and black

A triumph of colour

A feast only for Scicli

Wonderful quick decorations

A miniature city

An eagle-shaped city

Many owners, one palace

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The internal colours

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

The Baroque town by the sea

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

One city, three sites

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A long reconstruction

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The city of museums

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

The interior and its masterpieces

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A talking palace

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Discovering the mother church

Some masterpieces

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A colourful floor

A new site for a new city

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The wall comes to life

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

Two illustrious patron saints

The Staircase of Angels

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Burgos crucifix

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A majestic and luminous church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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 kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A square as the heart of the city

The theatre of taste

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Feast days

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Prominent façade

A small room with a golden entrance

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The colours of the cathedral

Norman apses

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The two churches

From International Gothic to present day

A new site for a new church

A half-Baroque church

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Modica, a city with ancient origins

One city, two sites

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara