Palazzolo Acreide

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

sight
Infinite lights and colours

How wonderful!
The light and colours inside the church of San Sebastiano leave everyone breathless!
The crystal chandeliers shine and the surfaces around them reflect and light up in turn.
The marble columns shine and the blue, green and yellow stained glass windows filter warm rays of sunshine.
Full of colour, the church interior is tinged with black and white from the floor, accompanied by the yellow and light grey of the columns, and the white and gold of the walls. navata laterale lampadari accesi

hearing
21 cannon shots

The feast of San Sebastiano is an important moment for all worshippers and the whole country. Citizens gather together to honour the patron saint.
Every year on 10th August at 8:15 am, twenty-one cannon shots precede the departure of the bread cart, accompanied by music, for the traditional collection of “cuddure” (ring-shaped biscuits), offered to St. Sebastian.
Loud noises, firecrackers, music, voices and shouting can be heard early in the morning.

The senses tell the Benedictine Monastery and San NicoIò l’Arena

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Giovanni Evangelista

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A colourful floor

Some masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the church of Santa Maria del Carmelo

The Maiolica of the staircase

The interior and its masterpieces

The two churches

Discovering the mother church

The chocolate of Modica

One city, two sites

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Giuliano ai Crociferi

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell the story of the staircase of Santa Maria del Monte

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Baroque town by the sea

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A new site for a new church

A feast only for Scicli

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the story of the Badia di Sant’Agata

Many owners, one palace

Between white and black

One city, three sites

A miniature city

The church of Carmine

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Two illustrious patron saints

Wonderful quick decorations

Some prestigious works

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A symbol for the town

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A majestic and luminous church

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The wall comes to life

The internal colours

New roads for Catania

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A city in colour

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

An eagle-shaped city

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A museum to save a tradition

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A talking palace

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A prominent church

A new site for a new city

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Searching for colour

From the contrast of the exterior to the internal jubilation of colours

The city of museums

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Church of San Giuliano (St. Julian) on Via dei Crociferi: reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Staircase of Angels

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giovanni Battista

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

From International Gothic to present day

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Norman apses

A half-Baroque church

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The role of the religious orders in rebuilding the Val di Noto

A long reconstruction

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Prominent façade

The theatre of taste

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Feast days

Freedom of worship and the role of the Catholic Church in the diffusion of Baroque

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The senses tell the Mother Church of San Nicolò and of the Santissimo Salvatore