The earthquake of 1693 leveled much of the southern tip of Sicily, including the neighboring towns of Ragusa and Modica. Both towns were rebuilt in the then-current Baroque style, with local interpretations that became known as Sicilian Baroque.
Along with six others, Ragusa and Modica were named a UNESCO World Heritage Site as the "culmination and final flowering of Baroque art in Europe."
Ragusa built a new town on a hill above the old one, but enough buildings were left in the old town for it to remain active, with new Baroque buildings replacing fallen ones.
Modica, too, is built on two levels, and its upper town is highlighted by the Church of San Giorgio, built with materials recovered from fallen buildings after the earthquake.
In the lower town, look for the 15th-century Gothic rose window in the Chiesa del Carmine.
