Church of Idria - Ragusa

The facade

A few steps from Palazzo Cosentini, climbing the stairs of the Salita Commendatore you will find the Church of Idria (or Itria), once dedicated to St. Julian with an adjoining shelter for the poor and wayfarers destroyed in the earthquake of 1693 The place of worship is of very ancient origins, it probably rises on the ruins of an ancient Byzantine church. 

The prospectus is presented on two levels. The first-order façade has four half-pillars (pilasters) on high pedestals, terminated by capitals with sculptures. The central door has two pilasters with sculptures unfortunately corroded by time, above the circular arch, a richly carved stone frame, followed by three cornices topped by a window with the arch surmounted by a carved carving and an iron eagle where the cross of the Order of the Knights of Malta is visible in the center. The two side doors have carved cornices followed by circular windows. The second order has a simple rectangular window in the center, two pilasters on pedestals and, on the sides, two balustrades completed by curvilinear sculptures typical of the Baroque period. Finally, the façade is completed by a triangular pediment.

News of a church dedicated to S. Giuliano can be found in the Sacred Visit Diocesan of 1542, on this occasion the bishop Platamone visited the altar of S. Maria d'Idria placed inside the church, then under the jurisdiction of the Gerosolimitano Order[1]. According to Sortino Trono, the Church of S. Giuliano was built during the rule of the Chiaramente family in Ragusa (1283-1391) [2]. The Church of S. Giuliano was rebuilt byOrder of the Knights of Malta in 1629, it is not known when and how the church was dedicated to the Madonna of Idria. The term Idria derives, according to some interpretations, from the Byzantine “odygitriati”, equivalent to Madonna of the journey[3] (or Madonna of the good journey), according to others the term is attributable to the Greek term "hydria" (from hydor = water), the Greek name of the vessel that was used to transport and pour water and therefore the cult would be attributed to the Madonna of the waters, perhaps due to one or more springs in the vicinity. Damaged by the earthquake of 1693, it was rebuilt and enlarged in its present form in 1739. The cross of the Order of Malta, as well as at the entrance, is visible inside in several places.

On the left side of the church, there is a bell tower which ends with an octagonal dome surrounded by a balustrade parapet. The base of the dome is enriched with colored majolica representing yellow vases and flowers of various colors. The bell tower offers the best of itself especially when seen from above, in particular from the bends of Via Mazzini, the road that leads from Ragusa Centro to Ibla. A feature that the Idria Church has in common with two other churches in Ragusa, the Church of San Giovanni and the Chiesa delle Anime del Purgatorio, is precisely the fact that the tower is to the left of the façade, as if not to detract from the church's value. The interior is composed of a basilica with three naves divided by columns with Corinthian capitals. The apse (central chapel) is characterized by a tribune built in stone and plaster with carved and painted columns that frame a painting depicting S. Corrado da Licentice and S. Guglielmo da Scicli supporting a painting of the Madonna and Child Jesus. On the vault a fresco depicting the Assumption and the coronation of Mary. The right aisle, starting from the apse, is characterized by:

• a baroque altar with twisted columns enriched with floral motifs containing a crucifix eighteenth century flanked by two statuettes: the Madonna and San Giovanni Evangelista. The altar belonged to the Cosentini family who enjoyed the right of patronage over it (ius patronatus) and which could be accessed directly from the nearby Palazzo Cosentini through an internal connection;
• a baroque altar containing a painting of St. Joseph;
• a chapel dedicated to the Addolorata containing a marble altar and ornamental frescoes on the vault.   

Going along the left aisle towards the exit you will find:

• a baroque altar with spiral columns enriched with floral motifs containing a seventeenth-century painting representing S. Giuliano and S. Giovanni Battista, attributed to Mattia Preti known as il Calabrese; in the picture, the coat of arms of the Order of the Knights of Malta is visible at the bottom of the picture. 
• an altar also in Baroque style containing a painting depicting S. Biagio,
• a painting of S. Gregorio Nazzareno by Ignazio Scacco.

The bell tower seen from the Palazzo della Cancelleria

Above the entrance stands a wooden organ on which a large cross of the Order of Malta stands out. On the floor you can see three asphaltic stone slabs that cover three graves found empty and filled with debris during the restoration work carried out a few decades ago.

Chapel of the Addolorata

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