4. Church of Saint Joseph

The Church of St. Joseph was built in the mid-18th century on the initiative of the Benedictine nuns of the adjoining convent occupying the site of the previous Church of St. Thomas, which was destroyed by the 1963 earthquake.
A significant example of the late Baroque style of the Val di Noto, it has pretty unified architectural features, which suggests a single designer, perhaps belonging to the Gagliardi’s circle (Fig. a).
The bell tower façade, concave design with three levels and three tiers, contains many carvings and sculptures, with statues of Benedictine saints.
Two small statues depicting St. Augustine and St. Gregory the Great (Fig. b). In the second order, bordered by columns and volutes, there is a large window in the centre featuring grilles in the shape of a goose chest. The central part ends with a belfry with three arches and a spire with a rococo frieze above (Fig. c).
The church is accessed via a short flight of steps. The interior follows the canons of monastic architecture: the oval hall (Fig. d) is covered by a large domed vault, decorated with a fresco depicting the Glory of St. Joseph and St. Benedict (Fig. e). The floor is made of white limestone inlaid with pitchstone and painted majolica (Fig. f). Being cloistered nuns, both the choir, located in the atrium, and the tribunes (which overlook the nave), feature some “gelosie” (rounded grates), which allow the nuns to attend services without being seen.