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.

Norman apses

A symbol for the town

The interior and its masterpieces

The colours of the cathedral

A feast only for Scicli

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Feast days

A majestic and luminous church

The wall comes to life

The Staircase of Angels

A prominent church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Some prestigious works

The Maiolica of the staircase

Prominent façade

The theatre of taste

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A city in colour

Between white and black

The chocolate of Modica

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

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

The disastrous earthquake

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A museum to save a tradition

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A long reconstruction

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

One city, three sites

Feasting in Palazzolo

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Two illustrious patron saints

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A talking palace

A triumph of colour

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

New roads for Catania

A hall for the feasts

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Wonderful quick decorations

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The internal colours

A square as the heart of the city

One city, two sites

A miniature city

From International Gothic to present day

A new site for a new church

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A new site for a new city

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Searching for colour

Some masterpieces

A colourful floor

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Burgos crucifix

A half-Baroque church

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Discovering the mother church

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

The city of museums

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

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Baroque town by the sea

An eagle-shaped city

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A small room with a golden entrance

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

The church of Carmine