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 colours of the cathedral

The disastrous earthquake

An eagle-shaped city

The wall comes to life

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Between white and black

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

A half-Baroque church

Some masterpieces

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

The church of Carmine

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

The chocolate of Modica

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A long reconstruction

A feast only for Scicli

A miniature city

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

A museum to save a tradition

Two illustrious patron saints

The city of museums

Discovering the mother church

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A new site for a new city

The Burgos crucifix

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A colourful floor

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

St. Sebastian, so much work!

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

One city, two sites

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The internal colours

The Baroque town by the sea

A symbol for the town

A majestic and luminous church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

From International Gothic to present day

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

One city, three sites

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The two churches

New roads for Catania

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

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

A small room with a golden entrance

Prominent façade

A talking palace

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A triumph of colour

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Maiolica of the staircase

Feast days

The Staircase of Angels

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The interior and its masterpieces

A new site for a new church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Searching for colour

The theatre of taste

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A city in colour

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Many owners, one palace

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Norman apses

Wonderful quick decorations

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Some prestigious works