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 Sebastiano

A half-Baroque church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The church of Carmine

Between white and black

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Staircase of Angels

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

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

A hall for the feasts

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Discovering the mother church

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

A feast only for Scicli

A new site for a new church

Feast days

New roads for Catania

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A colourful floor

A new site for a new city

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The colours of the cathedral

The Burgos crucifix

Connections with other UNESCO sites

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

An eagle-shaped city

Prominent façade

A museum to save a tradition

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The internal colours

Wonderful quick decorations

From International Gothic to present day

The theatre of taste

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A symbol for the town

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

Two illustrious patron saints

One city, two sites

A city in colour

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

Some prestigious works

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

A small room with a golden entrance

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The wall comes to life

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The two churches

A triumph of colour

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Many owners, one palace

Norman apses

The disastrous earthquake

The Baroque town by the sea

A prominent church

One city, three sites

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The chocolate of Modica

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A talking palace

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

Some masterpieces

A miniature city

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A long reconstruction

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A majestic and luminous church

Modica, a city with ancient origins

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The city of museums

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Searching for colour

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?