Ragusa

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento (Most Blessed Sacrament), to the right of the main apse is marvellous, a veritable triumph of colours and materials. Colourful elements welcome worshippers at the entrance and form the basis of the entire chapel’s decoration.

zoom La cappella del Santissimo Sacramento
La cappella del Santissimo Sacramento

The polychrome polychrome altar immediately attracts the attention of passers-by. Red, green, white and gold are featured in the aedicula , where the painting of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus was placed in the 19th century.
The wall decorations, the stuccoes , the gold and the blue background embellish the interior of the chapel and transport worshippers to a supernatural dimension.

foto dettaglio cappella ss sacramento foto dettaglio cappella ss sacramento
Using relief, the chapel recounts some of the most important moments in Christ’s life such as the Supper at Emmaus, carved in marble and inserted in the lower part of the altar in a medallion, and other stucco depictions placed at the sides of the altar.
These show the Offering of Melchizedek, a very important figure in the Old Testament who offers bread and wine to God in the name of Abraham, and the Last Supper in imitation of the famous fresco by Leonardo da Vinci, now kept in the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan.

One city, three sites

A miniature city

A new site for a new city

The church of Carmine

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A small room with a golden entrance

Searching for colour

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The two churches

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A symbol for the town

The interior and its masterpieces

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

Some masterpieces

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A new site for a new church

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Burgos crucifix

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

A long reconstruction

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Norman apses

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Feast days

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

One city, two sites

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Two illustrious patron saints

A city in colour

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The internal colours

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The wall comes to life

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

The disastrous earthquake

An eagle-shaped city

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Feasting in Palazzolo

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The city of museums

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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A majestic and luminous church

The Maiolica of the staircase

From International Gothic to present day

Many owners, one palace

Between white and black

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New roads for Catania

Wonderful quick decorations

The Baroque town by the sea

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Prominent façade

A museum to save a tradition

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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A square as the heart of the city

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A Nobel Prize in Modica

A prominent church

A talking palace

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A hall for the feasts

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Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A triumph of colour

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A colourful floor

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The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The colours of the cathedral

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Some prestigious works

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

A half-Baroque church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The Staircase of Angels

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Limestone, the colour of harmony

A feast only for Scicli