Page 152 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Sicily

150  SICIL Y AREA B Y AREA

Exploring Noto E Museo Civico
Corso Vittorio Emanuele III, 34.
The heart of the town is the main avenue, the modern Viale Tel 0931-836 462. Open 9am–1pm,
Marconi, which becomes Corso Vittorio Emanuele at the 3:30–7:30pm Tue–Sun.
monumental Porta Reale (or Ferdinandea) city gate, and passes The Civic Museum (some
through Piazza XXIV Maggio, Piazza Municipio (a good starting rooms of which are closed for
restoration) features ancient and
point for a visit) and Piazza XXX Ottobre. Steps lead to the upper medieval material from the old
town, with marvellous views of the landscape around. town, Noto Antica, and from
many nearby places.
three-flight staircase designed R San Francesco
by Paolo Labisi, the façade All`Immacolata
bearing twin bell towers and a Corso Vittorio Emanuele III, 142.
bronze portal. The interior has Open 8:30am–12:30pm, 4:30–6:30pm.
a wealth of frescoes and other On the wide stretch of Piazza
decoration, especially in the XXX Ottobre, a stairway leads to
side chapels. The Cathedral San France sco, which was once
has now been brought back part of a convent and is now a
to its former splendour high school. The church, with
following restoration. stucco decoration, was built
The Cathedral prior to 1996 in the mid-18th century and
P Palazzo has a wooden statue of the
Ducezio Virgin Mary (1564), which
Piazza Trigona. probably came from one of
Open 9:30am–1:30pm, the churches in the old
3–6pm daily. town, Noto Antica.
This palazzo, which
stands opposite the P Palazzo
Cathedral, was built Trigona
in 1746 by Vincenzo Closed to the public.
Sinatra. The façade is This palazzo is perhaps
decorated with an the most “classically”
The Cathedral after the collapse of the cupola impressive series Baroque building in
of columns. In the Noto. The façade
R Cathedral interior, which now with its curved
In the winter of 1996, a loud houses the Town balconies blends in
rumble signalled the collapse Hall offices, there with the adjacent
of the Cathedral cupola, leaving is a huge drawing religious and civic
a noticeable scar in the heart room decorated in Statue on the Cathedral façade buildings, in line
of Noto. It was a great loss to the French Louis with the schemes
Sicilian Baroque art. The church XV style, with gold and stucco of the architects who rebuilt
was completed in 1776, and decorative elements and a Noto. The drawing rooms of
dedicated to San Nicolò. It stands fine fresco on the vault by the palazzo were frescoed by
at the end of a spectacular Antonio Mazza. Antonio Mazza.
Baroque Architecture and Art in Noto
After the devastating earthquake of 1693, a programme of
reconstruction was introduced throughout eastern Sicily in
the early 18th century. The architects entrusted with this task
elaborated upon the achievements of 17th-century Baroque
architecture and adopted recurrent features that can still be seen
in the streets of Noto. The façades of both churches and civic
buildings became of fundamental importance in the hands of
these men. Some of them, like Rosario Gagliardi, who designed the
churches of Santa Chiara, Santissimo Crocefisso and San Domenico
in Noto, were originally craftsmen themselves. Their skills can be
seen in the great attention paid to decorative detail in façades and
balconies. Rebuilding made the large monastery complexes –
which together with the mansions of the landed gentry were the
economic and social backbone of 18th- and 19th-century Noto –
even more grandiose than before. In 2002 Noto and other Baroque An 18th-century Baroque balcony on
towns were named World Heritage sites by UNESCO. Palazzo Nicolaci in Noto

For hotels and restaurants in this region see p204 and pp214–16

150-151_EW_Sicily.indd 150 11/3/16 2:10 PM
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Catalogue template “UK” LAYER
(Source v2.4)
Date 25th April 2013
Size 125mm x 217mm