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.

The Staircase of Angels

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

New roads for Catania

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A miniature city

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A museum to save a tradition

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

The Baroque town by the sea

A small room with a golden entrance

One city, three sites

A long reconstruction

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A new site for a new city

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

From International Gothic to present day

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Between white and black

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A symbol for the town

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The disastrous earthquake

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

Two illustrious patron saints

A hall for the feasts

A talking palace

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

One city, two sites

A Nobel Prize in Modica

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Prominent façade

A city in colour

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The wall comes to life

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The interior and its masterpieces

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A feast only for Scicli

The two churches

A majestic and luminous church

The colours of the cathedral

The internal colours

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Feast days

An eagle-shaped city

The Burgos crucifix

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A half-Baroque church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The city of museums

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Some masterpieces

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A triumph of colour

The theatre of taste

The church of Carmine

Norman apses

Many owners, one palace

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A prominent church

Searching for colour

Discovering the mother church

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Wonderful quick decorations

Feasting in Palazzolo

A colourful floor

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A square as the heart of the city

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The chocolate of Modica

Connections with other UNESCO sites