Palazzolo Acreide

Some masterpieces

The church houses splendid works that complete and decorate the interior.
The altar area definitely attracts attention. Composed of a series of wonderful elements, the structure behind the altar is a carving masterpiece.
La struttura dietro l’altare La struttura dietro l’altare
It is richly elaborate and a dozen columns surmounted by putto heads complete the composition. The same attention to detail can be found in the use of colour on the lower part of the structure, completely in marble; the artist chose and combined fragments of blue, red, yellow and white marble.

A little above the altar is the painting by Paolo Tanasi completed in 1827.
The work depicts the Annunciation , one of the most important moments in Christian history when the angel announced to the Virgin Mary that she would give birth to the Messiah. Tanasi chose well-defined colours such as yellow, which highlights the shape of the angel, and blue, which emphasises the corporeality of the Virgin Mary.
In the transept you can see the Madonna del Carmelo (Our Lady of Mount Carmel) completely covered in gold. She shines from afar and demands attention. The right nave houses the statue of Santa Teresa (St. Theresa) and as usual, above one of the altars is the depiction of the Holy Family, the Virgin Mary, the Child and John the Baptist.
Un dipinto, dietro l’altare raffigura l’Annunciazione la statua di Santa Teresa Madonna del Carmelo, nel transetto

The internal colours

The disastrous earthquake

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A triumph of colour

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The theatre of taste

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A half-Baroque church

From International Gothic to present day

One city, two sites

A long reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

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

Some prestigious works

Some masterpieces

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The two churches

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

A new site for a new church

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

A hall for the feasts

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Searching for colour

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

A majestic and luminous church

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A square as the heart of the city

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Feast days

The Baroque town by the sea

Norman apses

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A talking palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Discovering the mother church

The colours of the cathedral

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The chocolate of Modica

A new site for a new city

A miniature city

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

The church of Carmine

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

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

Between white and black

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

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Two illustrious patron saints

An eagle-shaped city

Wonderful quick decorations

One city, three sites

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

New roads for Catania

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The city of museums

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A symbol for the town

A feast only for Scicli

A small room with a golden entrance

The wall comes to life

Many owners, one palace

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

Prominent façade

The interior and its masterpieces

A prominent church

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The Maiolica of the staircase

A colourful floor

A museum to save a tradition

A city in colour

The Burgos crucifix