Duomo di San Giorgio

The Duomo di San Giorgio rises above Modica Alta at the head of a monumental staircase. Its late-Baroque façade and long stepped approach form a single urban composition, rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake and completed in the nineteenth century.

Why it matters

Modica is one of the eight towns included in the UNESCO-listed Late Baroque Towns of the Val di Noto. San Giorgio is a defining monument of its Baroque heritage, its façade and staircase responding to the steep hillside and the city's layered urban form.

What to notice

The façade is divided by columns into a series of vertical sections, with the sculptural rhythm continuing across its upper levels. The tower façade, designed by Rosario Gagliardi, rises more than sixty metres above the town. Five entrance portals correspond to the church's five naves, which end in three apses. The monumental staircase connects Modica's upper and lower town and opens views across the roofs of Modica Alta.

Context and history

A medieval church of San Giorgio stood on the site before the earthquakes of 1542, 1613 and 1693 destroyed or damaged successive buildings. The present reconstruction began in 1702 and continued, with several architects involved, until 1842. Gagliardi directed the celebrated tower façade; Francesco Paolo Labisi continued work on its upper levels and portals from 1761. The church is a major part of Modica's post-earthquake Baroque rebuilding.