Palazzolo Acreide

One city, three sites

Palazzolo Acreide is located further inland in Syracuse and is one of the oldest towns in the Val di Noto.Also struck by the 1693 earthquake, it was reborn from its rubble in the same location. Here the Baroque style fits in perfectly with the narrow, dense medieval streets.
Light enters the squares, making the façades and the contrasts between the colours stand out.
The town has three different construction phases that illustrate three different historical periods.
The medieval centre, which stood near former Acre, was located on a rocky spur in a strategic position for controlling the territory.
There stood a “palatium”, or imperial palace, which is probably where the name “palatiolum” of the new town came from. The oldest centre of the town was founded seventy years after the city of Syracuse, with which a lasting bond was built.
This new town on the plateau of the Hyblaean Mountains allowed trade between Syracuse and the other southern towns, promoting the spread of Hellenic culture in the centuries to come. After the tragic earthquake, the most important Baroque buildings and squares were built around the main street dedicated to Vittorio Emanuele. Palazzolo Acreide still retains some evidence of the ancient Greek city of Akrai: if you walk along Corso Vittorio Emanuele you’ll reach the Greek theatre .

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The Staircase of Angels

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

A city in colour

The internal colours

A talking palace

A new site for a new church

The theatre of taste

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

New roads for Catania

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The church of Carmine

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Many owners, one palace

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A hall for the feasts

The disastrous earthquake

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A half-Baroque church

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A museum to save a tradition

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A small room with a golden entrance

Between white and black

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A triumph of colour

Searching for colour

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

One city, three sites

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A colourful floor

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Norman apses

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Some masterpieces

The wall comes to life

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The Burgos crucifix

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Wonderful quick decorations

A square as the heart of the city

Prominent façade

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

The Baroque town by the sea

The two churches

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

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The city of museums

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A symbol for the town

A feast only for Scicli

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

From International Gothic to present day

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The colours of the cathedral

A miniature city

Some prestigious works

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

The chocolate of Modica

A majestic and luminous church

Two illustrious patron saints

A new site for a new city

Discovering the mother church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

One city, two sites

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A long reconstruction

Feast days

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Connections with other UNESCO sites

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The interior and its masterpieces

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