Ragusa

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

taste
A freshwater spring

Not far from the church of San Giuseppe (St. Joseph) is Porta Walter. It was built in medieval times and allowed people to leave the city and visit the lush green valley of Santa Domenica.
From here they would reach a spring where inhabitants rushed to quench their thirst and collect as much water as possible, especially on long, sweltering summer days!

sight
A question of perspective!

Depending on the time of day, the levels of the façade and its various elements create a unique and fascinating combination of light effects.
The plays of light and shadow change from hour to hour.
The endless chiaroscuro effects uncover and hide new details each time.

touch
Such rich materials!

The church brings out the diversity of the materials and the infinite possibilities for their use. As a matter of fact, the glass used in the large windows of the vault was also used to decorate the altars with a process that imitates marble.
Used for the worshippers’ seating, wood also proves to be an excellent material for beautiful wooden sculptures such as the Madonna near the altar.
madonna in legno altare

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Discovering the mother church

Many owners, one palace

The church of Carmine

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The wall comes to life

The two churches

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Feast days

Norman apses

A Nobel Prize in Modica

One city, three sites

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

A triumph of colour

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A small room with a golden entrance

Two illustrious patron saints

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A museum to save a tradition

A hall for the feasts

Wonderful quick decorations

The Staircase of Angels

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A miniature city

The theatre of taste

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Some prestigious works

A colourful floor

The Baroque town by the sea

A new site for a new city

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Prominent façade

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The chocolate of Modica

A prominent church

A feast only for Scicli

The interior and its masterpieces

The colours of the cathedral

A city in colour

A square as the heart of the city

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Searching for colour

A long reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A majestic and luminous church

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

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

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A symbol for the town

The disastrous earthquake

Feasting in Palazzolo

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

Some masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A half-Baroque church

One city, two sites

Between white and black

The city of museums

An eagle-shaped city

St. Sebastian, so much work!

From International Gothic to present day

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The internal colours

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

A talking palace

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Burgos crucifix

A new site for a new church

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

New roads for Catania

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph