Modica on Sicily

17 May 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  7 minutes

© Giuseppe.assenza

© Giuseppe.assenza

Modica (Sicilian: Muòrica) is a city and comune of 54,456 inhabitants in the Province of Ragusa, Sicily, southern Italy. The city is situated in the Hyblaean Mountains. Modica has neolithic origins and it represents the historical capital of the area which today almost corresponds to the Province of Ragusa. Until the 19th century it was the capital of a County that exercised such a wide political, economical and cultural influence to be counted among the most powerful feuds of the Mezzogiorno. Rebuilt following the devastating earthquake of 1693, its architecture has been recognised as providing outstanding testimony to the exuberant genius and final flowering of Baroque art in Europe and, along with other towns in the Val di Noto, is part of UNESCO Heritage Sites in Italy.   read more…

Scicli on Sicily

2 January 2023 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  6 minutes

© trolvag/cc-by-sa-3.0

© trolvag/cc-by-sa-3.0

Scicli is a town and municipality in the Province of Ragusa in the south east of Sicily, southern Italy. It is 25 kilometres (16 mi) from Ragusa, and 188 kilometres (117 mi) from Palermo, and has a population (2017) of 27,051. Alongside seven other cities in the Val di Noto, it has been listed as one of UNESCO‘s World Heritage Sites. The municipality borders with Modica and Ragusa. The economy of Scicli is mostly agricultural, and the area is renowned for its many greenhouses producing the primizie (“early fruits”) that are exported all over Italy.   read more…

Theme Week Sicily – Ragusa

20 August 2015 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  7 minutes

© Okkiproject/cc-by-sa-3.0

© Okkiproject/cc-by-sa-3.0

Ragusa is the capital of the province of Ragusa with around 75,000 inhabitants. It is built on a wide limestone hill between two deep valleys, Cava San Leonardo and Cava Santa Domenica. Together with seven other cities in the Val di Noto, it is listed among the UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The economy of the surrounding province hinges mainly on light industries, agriculture (horticulture, olives), farming, tourism, light manufacturing and small oilfields.   read more…

Late Baroque Towns of the Val di Noto

11 February 2015 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Palaces, Castles, Manors, Parks, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  5 minutes

Catania - Cathedral Sant' Agata © Berthold Werner/cc-by-sa-3.0

Catania – Cathedral Sant’ Agata © Berthold Werner/cc-by-sa-3.0

Val di Noto is a geographical area of south east Sicily; it is dominated by the limestone Iblean plateau. The Val di Noto owes its fame to the reconstruction which underwent after the year 1693, when the entire area was decimated by an enormous earthquake. Following the earthquake, many towns were rebuilt on entirely new sites, such as Noto and Grammichele. The rulers of the time, the kings of Spain, accounted the nobleman Giuseppe Lanza with special powers, which allowed him to redesign the damaged towns based on rational and scenographic town plans.   read more…

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