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.

Feasting in Palazzolo

A square as the heart of the city

A museum to save a tradition

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The two churches

A city in colour

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The disastrous earthquake

Between white and black

One city, two sites

A talking palace

The interior and its masterpieces

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The wall comes to life

A miniature city

Some prestigious works

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

A feast only for Scicli

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A triumph of colour

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Prominent façade

A small room with a golden entrance

A colourful floor

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

From International Gothic to present day

Discovering the mother church

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

New roads for Catania

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A new site for a new church

A prominent church

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A symbol for the town

Norman apses

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

One city, three sites

A half-Baroque church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A long reconstruction

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A hall for the feasts

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

Two illustrious patron saints

The Staircase of Angels

The colours of the cathedral

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A new site for a new city

The Baroque town by the sea

Searching for colour

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Many owners, one palace

Feast days

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The church of Carmine

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

The Burgos crucifix

The internal colours

Some masterpieces

The chocolate of Modica

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Wonderful quick decorations

An eagle-shaped city

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph