Palazzolo Acreide

The two churches

The two main churches of Palazzolo Acreide, the Church of San Paolo (St. Paul) and the Church of San Sebastiano (St. Sebastian), are excellent examples of the particular late Baroque style.
  
They stand out from the other buildings in the town and hold particular significance.
Each with their own style, they form a theatrical setting that characterises the town space, so much so that their surrounding districts are named after them.
The great value of the two religious buildings is given by the interesting architectural features and the rich, elaborate decorations preserved inside. Both were rebuilt after the 1693 earthquake to demonstrate the wealth possessed by the local confraternities.
Religious feasts are very popular in Palazzolo Acreide! They take place from June to October and are dedicated to the town’s patron saints.
The feast of St. Paul the Apostle (29th June) ) has very ancient origins, is internationally celebrated and attracts thousands of worshippers and tourists every year. The same can be said of the feast in honour of St. Sebastian to whom almost the entire month of August is dedicated.

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A triumph of colour

The interior and its masterpieces

A colourful floor

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A hall for the feasts

Some masterpieces

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

The Staircase of Angels

Some prestigious works

Wonderful quick decorations

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The disastrous earthquake

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A square as the heart of the city

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

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A small room with a golden entrance

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

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

A half-Baroque church

Prominent façade

A new site for a new church

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A symbol for the town

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

A majestic and luminous church

Between white and black

The church of Carmine

Searching for colour

A new site for a new city

The wall comes to life

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

One city, two sites

The Burgos crucifix

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The city of museums

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Feasting in Palazzolo

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Norman apses

The Maiolica of the staircase

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Discovering the mother church

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

Two illustrious patron saints

One city, three sites

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The two churches

A miniature city

A talking palace

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A city in colour

Many owners, one palace

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The internal colours

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

A prominent church

The chocolate of Modica

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

A long reconstruction

The colours of the cathedral

An eagle-shaped city

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A museum to save a tradition

Feast days

New roads for Catania

A feast only for Scicli

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

From International Gothic to present day

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci