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Modica has neolithic origins and it represents the historical capital of the area which today almost corresponds to theProvince of Ragusa. Until the 19th century it was the capital of aCounty that exercised such a wide political, economical and cultural influence to be counted among the most powerful feuds of theMezzogiorno.
Rebuilt following the devastatingearthquake of 1693, its architecture has been recognised as providing outstanding testimony to the exuberant genius and final flowering of Baroque art in Europe and, along with other towns in theVal di Noto, is part ofUNESCO Heritage Sites inItaly.
According toThucydides, the city was founded in 1360 BC or 1031 BC and was inhabited by theSicels in the 7th century BC. It was probably a dependency ofSyracuse. Modica was occupied by theRomans after the battle of theEgadi islands against theCarthaginians in thePunic Wars 241 BC, together with Syracuse and all of Sicily. Modica became one of the thirty-fivedecuman ("spontaneously submitted") cities of the island and was oppressed by the praetorVerres.[3] It became an independentmunicipium, and apparently a place of some consequence. The city is also mentioned among the inland towns of the island both byPliny andPtolemy; and though its name is not found in the Itineraries, it is again mentioned by theGeographer of Ravenna.[4]Silius Italicus also includes it in his list of Sicilian cities, and immediately associates it withNetum (now Noto Antica), with which it was clearly in the same neighborhood.[5] The southeast of Sicily and Modica (according to the German historian L. Hertling) was rapidly Christianized, as thediocese of Syracuse boasts an apostolic foundation by St. Paul in 61 AD.[6] In 535, the Byzantine generalBelisarius expelled theOstrogoths and established for Justinian I the government of the East-Roman Empire (also known as theByzantine Empire) and the already Greek-speaking population fixed their culture until the Latinization of theNormans in the 11th century.
In 845, Modica was captured by theArabs during theMuslim conquest of Sicily.[7] They referred to the city asMudiqah.[8] The year after its capture, the Arabs fortified its citadels and it subsequently prospered under their rule.[9][10] In 1091 the conquest of Modica and the entire Val di Noto ended the long lasting war of the Normans, led byRoger of Hauteville, against the Arabs.
In 1296, Modica became the capital of an importantcounty, which under theChiaramonte family became a flourishing semi-independent state controlling the whole southern third of the island, with the right of a mint of its own and other privileges (seeCounty of Modica).
OnAssumption day 15 August 1474, Christians wreaked brutal havoc on the Jewish dwellers of the Cartellone area of Modica, the so-called "Strage dell'Assunta" (massacre of the assumption). This episode was the first and most horrible antisemitic massacre of Sicilian Israelites. During the evening a number of Christians (fomented by fanatic Catholic preachers inspired by the inquisitorial repression) slaughtered about 360 innocents causing a total and fierce devastation inLa Giudecca. The incitement that echoed through the streets was: "Hurrah for Mary! Death to the Jews!" (Viva Maria! Morte ai Giudei!).[11]
Later, theearthquake of 1693 destroyed the entire Val di Noto, and to a slightly lesser extent in Modica.Annexed to Italy in 1860, Modica remained district capital until 1926, when it was included in theprovince of Ragusa.
Modica consists of two urban centres, "Modica Alta" (Upper Modica) and "Modica Bassa" (Lower Modica). The older upper part is perched on the rocky top of the southern Ibeli hill, the lower part is built on the lower slopes and valley below. The walk down from Modica Alta to Modica Bassa reveals vistas of the lower town and involves many steps; not many attempt the reverse journey on foot.
During the last century the city has extended and developed new suburbs which include Sacro Cuore (or "Sorda"), Monserrato, Idria, these are often referred to as Modern Modica; both old and modern quarters of the city are today joined by one of Europe's highest bridge, the Guerrieri bridge, 300 metres (980 ft) long.
Despite being ravaged byearthquakes in 1613 and1693, and floods in 1833 and 1902, Modica has retained some of the most beautiful architecture in Sicily. Much of the city was rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake with imposing and conspicuous urban monuments in theSicilian Baroque style.
San Giorgio is the cathedral, dedicated toSt George. While the cathedral was rebuilt in aBaroque-style following the earthquake of 1693, like many other parts of the city its roots are in the Middle Ages. From the front of the cathedral a staircase of 300 steps leads down towards Modica Bassa.
San Pietro is another church, dedicated toSt Peter, in Modica Bassa, featuring a principal façade crowned by a typical Sicilian Baroque belltower, 49 metres (161 ft) high.
The economy of the area once principallyagricultural producingolives,carobs,legumes,cereals, andcattle; an extraordinary and unique product is the famouschocolate of Modica, produced with an ancient and original Aztec recipe. The city has now been joined byfactories producingtextiles, furniture and cars. Tourism is also an important industry to the area, since Modica became a UNESCOWorld Heritage Site in 2002.
^Kenneth Meyer Setton (1969).A History of the Crusades: The first hundred years, edited by M. W. Baldwin (illustrated ed.). Univ of Wisconsin Press. p. 45.ISBN9780299048341.
^The Modern Part of an Universal History: From the Earliest Account of Time. Compiled from Original Writers. By the Authors of The Antient Part. S. Richardson, T. Osborne, C. Hitch, A. Millar, John Rivington, S. Crowder, P. Davey and B. Law, T. Longman, and C. Ware. 1759. p. 426.
