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.

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A square as the heart of the city

An eagle-shaped city

The disastrous earthquake

The city of museums

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

Norman apses

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A half-Baroque church

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

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

The Staircase of Angels

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

The Baroque town by the sea

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Searching for colour

The theatre of taste

Modica, a city with ancient origins

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A long reconstruction

A colourful floor

Between white and black

The interior and its masterpieces

Wonderful quick decorations

One city, two sites

A prominent church

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A feast only for Scicli

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Many owners, one palace

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

The internal colours

Discovering the mother church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Feast days

A museum to save a tradition

The wall comes to life

The colours of the cathedral

A talking palace

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A hall for the feasts

Some masterpieces

Prominent façade

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

From International Gothic to present day

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

The chocolate of Modica

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

The church of Carmine

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A city in colour

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new site for a new city

New roads for Catania

A small room with a golden entrance

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Maiolica of the staircase

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new site for a new church

A miniature city

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Burgos crucifix

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

One city, three sites

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

The two churches

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Some prestigious works