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.

One city, two sites

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

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

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A Nobel Prize in Modica

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A triumph of colour

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Connections with other UNESCO sites

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Baroque town by the sea

The Burgos crucifix

The Maiolica of the staircase

A symbol for the town

A long reconstruction

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

From International Gothic to present day

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

A small room with a golden entrance

Prominent façade

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

The colours of the cathedral

A city in colour

The internal colours

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

One city, three sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

Some prestigious works

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Norman apses

A new site for a new church

Some masterpieces

Wonderful quick decorations

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Between white and black

A hall for the feasts

A half-Baroque church

The theatre of taste

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The wall comes to life

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The two churches

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Feast days

A colourful floor

Two illustrious patron saints

The Staircase of Angels

An eagle-shaped city

A new site for a new city

A miniature city

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Searching for colour

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Modica, a city with ancient origins

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The city of museums

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Discovering the mother church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A talking palace

The church of Carmine

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A museum to save a tradition

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

A prominent church

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The disastrous earthquake

A square as the heart of the city

A majestic and luminous church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The chocolate of Modica

A new palace for the La Rocca lords