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.

A half-Baroque church

A majestic and luminous church

The Baroque town by the sea

The Staircase of Angels

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A symbol for the town

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

The Burgos crucifix

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Many owners, one palace

Wonderful quick decorations

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Prominent façade

The colours of the cathedral

A miniature city

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

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A feast only for Scicli

Feasting in Palazzolo

The church of Carmine

One city, two sites

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A new site for a new city

Some prestigious works

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Some masterpieces

A small room with a golden entrance

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A colourful floor

The disastrous earthquake

From International Gothic to present day

Feast days

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Two illustrious patron saints

The interior and its masterpieces

The chocolate of Modica

The Maiolica of the staircase

A city in colour

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The wall comes to life

A square as the heart of the city

An eagle-shaped city

The internal colours

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A long reconstruction

The two churches

A hall for the feasts

A talking palace

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

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

One city, three sites

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

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

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Between white and black

The city of museums

A prominent church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Discovering the mother church

Searching for colour

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A museum to save a tradition

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Norman apses

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

A new site for a new church