RAGUSA

Ragusa (258km from Ragusa; 68000 inhabitants; 502m a. s. l.; zip code 97100; area code 0932) is the province’s capital city, interesting for both its artistical and historical heritage. Set on a wide limestone hill between two deep valleys (the Cava San Leonardo and the Cava Santa Domenica), it is divided into two distinct areas: Ragusa Ibla (the lower side) and Ragusa (the upper side), separated by the so-called valle dei ponti (valley of the bridges), a deep valley that is crossed by four successive bridges, among which that known as dei cappuccini (of the Capuchins), dating from the 18th century, is especially renowned. Its diverse architectonic features are evidence for an intense seismic activity in past times. After the 1693’s earthquake the residents settled on the site known as Ibla, that, today, with its medieval layout and lovely baroque architecture, is a most attractive historical centre and a major goal of tourists. The new quarters developed on a more modern orthogonal grid, with large and versatile streets. [ ...more ]

This 18th century description by historian and clergyman Vito Amore elegantly summarizes the political, economical and cultural importance of this city whose history is rooted in remote ages and events. Historical sources maintain that a town called Motyca, hereabouts, was inhabited by prehistoric peoples, called Sikels, around the 7th century BC., at the time of the Greek Colonization of Sicily; the historian Mario Carrafa, in the 18th century, told of Greek coins discovered the area, bearing the inscription Motayon. Traces of a Roman settlement are clearer, it being perhaps a Roman Città Decumana (that is, liable for tax). Clearer signs were left by the Arabs who conquered a Castle in Mudiqah in 845. The city yet changed its name to Motica, Motuca and Mohac. The Normans, led by Roger of Hauteville, who had driven Arabians from Sicily, took it in the 11th century. He, lately known as The Norman and devoted to St. George, established the cult of this Saint who is now Modica’s patron saint. [ ...more ]

Scicli is a most lovely city in the province of Ragusa, lying on a vast valley amidst rocky mountains, where the San Bartolomeo, the Santa Maria La Nuova and the Fiumara di Modica rivers join. Its 18th century look most resulted from the reconstruction that followed the terrible earthquake of 1693. Thanks to its elegant palazzi and churches, and its picturesque shape, it is famously known as the “Baroque Jewel”. [ ...more ]

NOTO

In a region populated by olive and almond trees, Noto sits on a plateau dominating the valley of the Asinaro and its citrus plantations. This tiny Baroque jewel endowed with an opulent beauty is the result of a single tragic event: the earthquake of 1693, that, despite bringing death and destruction to this part of Sicily, also sparked a huge effort to rebuild. Previously, the town that stood some 9-10km away (see below Noto Antica) had its origins way back in Antiquity. lt witnessed the birth of Ducetius who, in the 5C, made the Greeks quake in their shoes for having incited the Siculi against his Sicilian nationalist movement. The 1693 earthquake completely destroyed the old town. A broader and less vulnerable site was chosen for the new town, one that might accommodate a straightforward, linear town plan, with intersections at right angles and wide, parallel streets in accordance with the new Baroque taste. Three of the main streets run on an east to west axis, so that they might always be bathed in sunshine. [ ...more ]