Palazzolo Acreide

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

sight
Infinite lights and colours

How wonderful!
The light and colours inside the church of San Sebastiano leave everyone breathless!
The crystal chandeliers shine and the surfaces around them reflect and light up in turn.
The marble columns shine and the blue, green and yellow stained glass windows filter warm rays of sunshine.
Full of colour, the church interior is tinged with black and white from the floor, accompanied by the yellow and light grey of the columns, and the white and gold of the walls. navata laterale lampadari accesi

hearing
21 cannon shots

The feast of San Sebastiano is an important moment for all worshippers and the whole country. Citizens gather together to honour the patron saint.
Every year on 10th August at 8:15 am, twenty-one cannon shots precede the departure of the bread cart, accompanied by music, for the traditional collection of “cuddure” (ring-shaped biscuits), offered to St. Sebastian.
Loud noises, firecrackers, music, voices and shouting can be heard early in the morning.

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

From International Gothic to present day

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

One city, two sites

The church of Carmine

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The wall comes to life

A new site for a new church

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

The Burgos crucifix

A triumph of colour

Prominent façade

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

One city, three sites

The disastrous earthquake

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

A majestic and luminous church

A prominent church

A museum to save a tradition

A long reconstruction

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Some masterpieces

The city of museums

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

Discovering the mother church

Feast days

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The Baroque town by the sea

A talking palace

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

New roads for Catania

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Searching for colour

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A new site for a new city

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Staircase of Angels

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

A city in colour

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Between white and black

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A miniature city

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Some prestigious works

The two churches

The internal colours

Two illustrious patron saints

The colours of the cathedral

Many owners, one palace

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

A feast only for Scicli

A colourful floor

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

An eagle-shaped city

The theatre of taste

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

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

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

The chocolate of Modica

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Maiolica of the staircase

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A hall for the feasts

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A half-Baroque church

A symbol for the town

The interior and its masterpieces

Norman apses