Highlights of Noto, Noto, Italy

In the south-eastern part of Sicily, eight towns comprise the World Heritage serial site of Val di Noto, recognized as a great rebuilding achievement in the decades following the devastating earthquake of 1693, which resulted in surpassing examples of Baroque town planning and architecture. It is a varied collection, ranging from entire historic centers in some of the towns to just a couple of named churches in others.

Our itinerary allowed us to spend time in five of the eight inscribed towns, and I intend to have a separate blog installment for each. Starting with Noto, which was our base for this leg of the trip and therefore ended up as the best-explored of the bunch.

The historic core of Noto is centered on the Cathedral, a prime example of the 18th-century Sicilian Baroque.

If you read my previous Sicilian notes ( here or here), you may find the statuary on the cathedral steps familiar.

Yes, same sculptor, Igor Mitoraj. I did not bother to research why his works were so prominently exhibited at several of our itinerary stops (and never showed up again beyond Noto). ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).