Modica

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

hearing
A small monumental organ

Organo santa maria del carmeloSongs and notes accompany the celebrations as they did centuries ago.
The organ is made of wood, small in size, and placed above the entrance. Made in the second half of the 18th century, it is one of the few still working.
The music of those who still know how to play the instrument enchants and accompanies the worshippers as they experience the moment of prayer more intensely, just like in the past.

touch
Watch what you paint on

Different materials, different techniques!
In order to paint on a canvas, panel or wall, an artist must master every technique. Painting on canvas means using a soft media with a fairly smooth surface.
Panels, like the one of St. Albert, are hard, made of wood and very irregular, and can have higher and lower sections. Finally, in order to fresco a wall, an artist must lay out an even base to achieve a smooth surface on which to place the colour.
For any painting to be successful, an artist must, therefore, have excellent knowledge of the technique and materials.

sight
A beautiful rose window

The church of Carmine is an example of medieval architecture where the central rose window is still intact.
The only one of its kind, it has a very unusual decoration.
Instead of the usual floral elements, the stonemason created mini-columns surmounted by small capitals, each one different from the other and ready to converge in the centre.
It is a wonderful piece of craftsmanship that demonstrates the skill of its unknown artist.

A city in colour

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

From International Gothic to present day

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A feast only for Scicli

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

The colours of the cathedral

A small room with a golden entrance

Two illustrious patron saints

The Burgos crucifix

Prominent façade

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Baroque town by the sea

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A symbol for the town

The chocolate of Modica

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

Discovering the mother church

Wonderful quick decorations

The two churches

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A square as the heart of the city

A triumph of colour

A colourful floor

The internal colours

A new site for a new church

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

Many owners, one palace

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Norman apses

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Some prestigious works

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

A half-Baroque church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A new site for a new city

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

One city, three sites

Feast days

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

The wall comes to life

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Searching for colour

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A long reconstruction

The disastrous earthquake

A majestic and luminous church

Some masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Maiolica of the staircase

An eagle-shaped city

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A hall for the feasts

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The theatre of taste

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A museum to save a tradition

A miniature city

A prominent church

Limestone, the colour of harmony

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

New roads for Catania

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A talking palace

Between white and black

One city, two sites