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.

The city of museums

A hall for the feasts

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Burgos crucifix

Some masterpieces

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

Prominent façade

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

An eagle-shaped city

From International Gothic to present day

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

One city, three sites

Feast days

A majestic and luminous church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A long reconstruction

A square as the heart of the city

Discovering the mother church

The Maiolica of the staircase

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A half-Baroque church

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Searching for colour

Wonderful quick decorations

Many owners, one palace

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Staircase of Angels

A triumph of colour

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A miniature city

A museum to save a tradition

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The chocolate of Modica

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The interior and its masterpieces

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A symbol for the town

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A prominent church

Norman apses

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The wall comes to life

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A feast only for Scicli

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

The theatre of taste

Connections with other UNESCO sites

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Two illustrious patron saints

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 Giovanni Battista

New roads for Catania

One city, two sites

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Between white and black

A new site for a new city

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A talking palace

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The church of Carmine

The internal colours

A new site for a new church

A city in colour

A small room with a golden entrance

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A colourful floor