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.

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

Wonderful quick decorations

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A talking palace

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

A prominent church

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Burgos crucifix

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

New roads for Catania

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A square as the heart of the city

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

An eagle-shaped city

The city of museums

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

A hall for the feasts

A city in colour

A half-Baroque church

The internal colours

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

Feast days

The two churches

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The interior and its masterpieces

Some masterpieces

A long reconstruction

Searching for colour

A colourful floor

The Maiolica of the staircase

One city, three sites

A majestic and luminous church

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A museum to save a tradition

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A triumph of colour

Two illustrious patron saints

Many owners, one palace

A symbol for the town

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The disastrous earthquake

A small room with a golden entrance

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A new site for a new church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

One city, two sites

The Baroque town by the sea

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Some prestigious works

From International Gothic to present day

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

The wall comes to life

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A new site for a new city

The chocolate of Modica

The Staircase of Angels

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The theatre of taste

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

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

A feast only for Scicli

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Norman apses

The church of Carmine

A miniature city

The colours of the cathedral

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Prominent façade

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Between white and black

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Discovering the mother church