Ragusa

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

hearing
Angelic song

On 24 June 1858 the church resounded with festivities.
The great organ was inaugurated, with more than three thousand pipes and a gigantic wooden cantoria (a structure built to house the choir). We can only imagine the sweet sound that accompanied that moment.
The organ still works today and can be found in the right chapel before the transept, while the cantoria was placed above the main portal.
For centuries, music and angelic songs have been an integral part of liturgical functions.
foto organo foto organo nella prima cappella di destra del transetto

touch
Pietra pece, a special stone

The dark, petroleum-infused pietra pece of the floor smells like petrol and leaves a coat of grease on your fingers like oil!
This unique rock is widely used because its particular composition can make a room resistant to humidity.

sight
Diversity makes everything more special

The two-tone interior makes the cathedral of San Giovanni Battista (St. John the Baptist) wonderful. The white walls combined with the black floor enhances both elements and adds liveliness to the environment.
Once inside the church of St. John the Baptist, our sense of sight is also stimulated by the colourful altars that crowd the side naves.
Red, green, white, gold, and even the black of the balustrades stimulate the visitor’s eye.

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Norman apses

Discovering the mother church

Feasting in Palazzolo

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

One city, three sites

From International Gothic to present day

A city in colour

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

The interior and its masterpieces

The disastrous earthquake

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A feast only for Scicli

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The colours of the cathedral

Prominent façade

New roads for Catania

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The theatre of taste

A hall for the feasts

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A colourful floor

The chocolate of Modica

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A square as the heart of the city

A miniature city

A symbol for the town

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A half-Baroque church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A triumph of colour

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Maiolica of the staircase

The two churches

One city, two sites

A new site for a new church

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A small room with a golden entrance

Some prestigious works

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The church of Carmine

A talking palace

The internal colours

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

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Staircase of Angels

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Burgos crucifix

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Between white and black

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new site for a new city

A museum to save a tradition

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Some masterpieces

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The wall comes to life

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

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

Feast days

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Many owners, one palace

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Wonderful quick decorations

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A prominent church

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

The city of museums

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A long reconstruction

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

The Baroque town by the sea

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

Searching for colour

Two illustrious patron saints

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