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 museum to save a tradition

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

A city in colour

Connections with other UNESCO sites

An eagle-shaped city

A new site for a new church

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

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The colours of the cathedral

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The two churches

The church of Carmine

Modica, a city with ancient origins

From International Gothic to present day

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

The Burgos crucifix

Searching for colour

Prominent façade

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

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The interior and its masterpieces

A half-Baroque church

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

One city, two sites

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A prominent church

Discovering the mother church

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Many owners, one palace

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A miniature city

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Maiolica of the staircase

The theatre of taste

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Some masterpieces

The city of museums

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A new site for a new city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Two illustrious patron saints

A hall for the feasts

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

New roads for Catania

The chocolate of Modica

A long reconstruction

Feast days

Wonderful quick decorations

One city, three sites

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A feast only for Scicli

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

A triumph of colour

A square as the heart of the city

Norman apses

A colourful floor

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A small room with a golden entrance

Some prestigious works

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A symbol for the town

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The wall comes to life

A talking palace

Between white and black

The internal colours

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A majestic and luminous church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The Staircase of Angels