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 talking palace

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A Nobel Prize in Modica

An eagle-shaped city

A museum to save a tradition

Discovering the mother church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

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

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

Searching for colour

The chocolate of Modica

The interior and its masterpieces

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Feasting in Palazzolo

A new site for a new church

A city in colour

One city, two sites

Wonderful quick decorations

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

Some masterpieces

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Baroque town by the sea

Between white and black

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

Prominent façade

A colourful floor

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A long reconstruction

The Burgos crucifix

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A new site for a new city

A feast only for Scicli

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

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

A symbol for the town

From International Gothic to present day

The disastrous earthquake

The Maiolica of the staircase

The theatre of taste

Some prestigious works

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The two churches

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Feast days

A triumph of colour

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The internal colours

A hall for the feasts

A miniature city

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Two illustrious patron saints

New roads for Catania

The Staircase of Angels

Many owners, one palace

A square as the heart of the city

Norman apses

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A small room with a golden entrance

The wall comes to life

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A prominent church

One city, three sites

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo