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.

Searching for colour

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

A talking palace

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Discovering the mother church

Between white and black

A museum to save a tradition

The Burgos crucifix

A triumph of colour

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

From International Gothic to present day

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The disastrous earthquake

One city, three sites

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A new site for a new city

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A long reconstruction

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

One city, two sites

The internal colours

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Many owners, one palace

The interior and its masterpieces

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The Maiolica of the staircase

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

A majestic and luminous church

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

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The city of museums

A miniature city

Some masterpieces

The chocolate of Modica

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

An eagle-shaped city

New roads for Catania

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Feast days

The Baroque town by the sea

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

The colours of the cathedral

A feast only for Scicli

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A new site for a new church

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The two churches

A hall for the feasts

Prominent façade

A square as the heart of the city

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The theatre of taste

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Norman apses

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A symbol for the town

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A colourful floor

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Feasting in Palazzolo

A prominent church

Some prestigious works

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The wall comes to life

Limestone, the colour of harmony

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A city in colour

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

A small room with a golden entrance

A half-Baroque church

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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