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

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

Two illustrious patron saints

A colourful floor

Discovering the mother church

Feast days

The wall comes to life

An eagle-shaped city

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

Prominent façade

A symbol for the town

Many owners, one palace

The city of museums

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A feast only for Scicli

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Wonderful quick decorations

The theatre of taste

A city in colour

Some masterpieces

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

New roads for Catania

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Some prestigious works

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A new site for a new church

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Baroque town by the sea

The Staircase of Angels

The church of Carmine

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A prominent church

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The colours of the cathedral

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

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

A triumph of colour

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

A miniature city

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A talking palace

One city, two sites

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A half-Baroque church

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Norman apses

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The interior and its masterpieces

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A square as the heart of the city

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Maiolica of the staircase

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

From International Gothic to present day

A small room with a golden entrance

The disastrous earthquake

The Burgos crucifix

Feasting in Palazzolo

Between white and black

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

One city, three sites

Searching for colour

The internal colours

The chocolate of Modica

A museum to save a tradition

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

A majestic and luminous church

The two churches

A long reconstruction

A new site for a new city