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.

Wonderful quick decorations

A long reconstruction

A triumph of colour

Between white and black

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A talking palace

A small room with a golden entrance

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

The Baroque town by the sea

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Feast days

Some masterpieces

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

The colours of the cathedral

Modica, a city with ancient origins

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

A feast only for Scicli

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The internal colours

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A museum to save a tradition

A miniature city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Burgos crucifix

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A hall for the feasts

A prominent church

The two churches

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Prominent façade

Two illustrious patron saints

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

One city, three sites

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

The theatre of taste

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The wall comes to life

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The church of Carmine

A colourful floor

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Discovering the mother church

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A square as the heart of the city

The interior and its masterpieces

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A half-Baroque church

A city in colour

A new site for a new city

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A symbol for the town

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

The city of museums

A majestic and luminous church

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Staircase of Angels

An eagle-shaped city

Searching for colour

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Some prestigious works

New roads for Catania

Norman apses

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

One city, two sites

From International Gothic to present day