Ragusa

Searching for colour

The interior of the church of San Giuseppe (St. Joseph) is a single large oval-shaped room.
The Friar Alberto Maria di San Giovanni Battista most likely took inspiration for its floor plan from the church of Santa Chiara (St. Claire) in Noto.
The architect friar had two entrances built, one from Piazza Pola and the other directly from the convent for access by the nuns. As you enter the church you are surprised and overwhelmed by its very high ceiling, an effect achieved thanks to the majestic dome and the four windows that fill the space with light.
Ingresso verso l’altare foto dal basso verso l’alto della cupola
As for the walls, they were left white with some golden stucco decoration.
This pallor, however, is immediately broken up by four colourful altars placed along the walls, the painting on the high altar and the vault fresco.

zoom affresco della volta
affresco della volta

The painting with the Holy Family was created by painter Matteo Battaglia from Ragusa and the fresco with the Glory of St. Benedict is the work of Sebastiano Lo Monaco, an artist from Catania.
To add colour to the room, and to create a strong contrast with the white walls, black pietra pece was used for the floor, which features a white limestone decoration.
uno degli altari sulle pareti pavimento

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A symbol for the town

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

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A new site for a new city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Searching for colour

A long reconstruction

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

One city, three sites

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A triumph of colour

Feast days

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The disastrous earthquake

Two illustrious patron saints

The Staircase of Angels

The wall comes to life

A museum to save a tradition

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Wonderful quick decorations

A new site for a new church

A feast only for Scicli

The Burgos crucifix

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

A majestic and luminous church

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

From International Gothic to present day

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A miniature city

One city, two sites

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

An eagle-shaped city

A talking palace

A prominent church

Some masterpieces

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Prominent façade

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The Baroque town by the sea

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

A colourful floor

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The church of Carmine

A hall for the feasts

A city in colour

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Some prestigious works

The chocolate of Modica

Norman apses

Discovering the mother church

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Between white and black

A half-Baroque church

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

The internal colours

The city of museums

Many owners, one palace

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A square as the heart of the city

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The colours of the cathedral

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The theatre of taste

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

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