Carved into the rock and discovered by accident in 1987, this 12th-century church is Modica's oldest. It's worth a visit for its Byzantine frescoes, whose central figure depicts Cristo Pantocratore (Christ All Powerful), dressed in a red tunic and blue mantle, and holding open the Gospel with the words Ego Sum Lux Mundi (I am the light of the world).
That the residence to the left of the entrance resembles a church is no coincidence; this was once the Chiesetta di Santo Nicolella, built over the ruins of the cave church after the earthquake of 1693.
