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.

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Two illustrious patron saints

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The chocolate of Modica

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

A new site for a new church

Searching for colour

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The city of museums

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The interior and its masterpieces

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Maiolica of the staircase

Between white and black

A miniature city

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

One city, two sites

A Nobel Prize in Modica

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A triumph of colour

A talking palace

A small room with a golden entrance

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

Many owners, one palace

Prominent façade

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Discovering the mother church

A long reconstruction

A hall for the feasts

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A city in colour

New roads for Catania

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Some prestigious works

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The Burgos crucifix

An eagle-shaped city

The wall comes to life

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Norman apses

A colourful floor

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

The theatre of taste

A majestic and luminous church

A museum to save a tradition

A feast only for Scicli

Wonderful quick decorations

A half-Baroque church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

One city, three sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Baroque town by the sea

The church of Carmine

The disastrous earthquake

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The internal colours

Feast days

The Staircase of Angels

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

A symbol for the town

Some masterpieces

The colours of the cathedral

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

A square as the heart of the city

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

A new site for a new city

From International Gothic to present day

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

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

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The façade used as a puppet theatre