Ragusa Ibla was rebuilt in the 1700s after the devastating earthquake of 1693. The reconstruction divided the city into two large neighbourhoods: Ragusa superiore (or Upper Ragusa), on the plateau, and Ibla, on the ruins of the ancient city. Eighteen of the city’s numerous monuments were inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2002.
The new city, Upper Ragusa houses the Museo archeologico regionale Ibleo on the first floor of Palazzo Mediterraneo. Building began on the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist which rises imposingly at the intersection of the two main thoroughfares of Ragusa superiore, via Roma and corso Italia, in 1694: its broad façade, crowned by a massive bell tower, looms over piazza San Giovanni with an ample roof terrace.
Corso Mazzini links the two neighbourhoods with a winding route. On the border between the two parts is the Church of Santa Maria delle Scale built between the 1400’s and 1500’s and rebuilt after 1693.
The reconstruction of Lower Ragusa, or Ibla, was characterised by the use of local stone and Baroque style. It can be reached by ponte Vecchio (also known as the Capuchin bridge), ponte Nuovo, ponte Giovanni XXIII, or a staircase of a hundred steps. Piazza della Repubblica is dominated by the Baroque portal of the Church of Purgatory. Salita Commendatore features the Baroque shapes of Palazzo Cosentini and 18th century Palazzo della Cancelleria in addition to the Church of Santa Maria dell’Itria. Ibla also holds the Cathedral of St. George, built to a design by Rosario Gagliardi between 1739 and 1775, whose striking façade extends the central body upwards and features ranked, overlapping columns.
Sicilia Film Commission
Via Emanuele Notarbartolo 9 — 90141 Palermo
Phone: +39 091 7078008; +39 091 7078264; +39 091 7078133; +39 091 7078145
Email: filmcommission@regione.sicilia.it
