Cattedrale di San Nicolò
The St. Nicholas's Cathedral is the most important Catholic place of worship in the city of Noto. On the top of a large staircase on the north side of Municipio Square, is dedicated to the Holy Bishop of Myra. Its construction began in 1694 and was completed in 1703. Over the centuries, however, both the facade and the interior have undergone many changes, until its present, with its dome built in the nineteenth century by Cassone. The interior, with three naves, houses numerous works of art, some of them coming from Ancient Noto, including the silver urn containing the St. Corrado Confalonieri's remains. The collapse of 1996, has caused the loss of the original iconography. In 2000 they began the work of reconstruction and restoration, carried out by local workers, trained in the use of limestone and ancient technologies: the new roof has been rebuilt as before, with wooden beams and tiles. At the end of this long and complex process, the Church was reopened in 2007. In 2011 were inaugurated the great fresco of the dome, representing "Pentecost", painted by Russian Oleg Supereko; the stained glass windows, made by Francesco Mori, the new altar, the cross and the pulpit in silvered bronze by sculptor Giuseppe Ducrot. The limestone facade to tender side towers, an example of the late Baroque style, stands on top of a spectacular flight of steps composed of three flights dating back to the eighteenth century, and is crowned by four statues of the late eighteenth century. The interior has a Latin cross with three naves, it has undergone many changes. Almost completely unadorned until the middle of last century, was painted by Nicola Arduino and Armando Baldinelli. Following the collapse of 1996, the loss of the imaging apparatus has restored to its original whiteness. In the apse there are two carved thrones for bishop (XVIII-XIX), a wooden choir and the high altar in polychrome marble, surmounted by the triptych by the master Arduino. In the aisles it can admire the pre-existing works, restored, which survived the collapse.
