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.

Discovering the mother church

Some masterpieces

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A miniature city

Between white and black

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A new site for a new city

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

The Staircase of Angels

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

One city, two sites

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The Maiolica of the staircase

A majestic and luminous church

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Two illustrious patron saints

Norman apses

A city in colour

An eagle-shaped city

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

The two churches

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The wall comes to life

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

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

The city of museums

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

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

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

A museum to save a tradition

The theatre of taste

Feasting in Palazzolo

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A new site for a new church

A symbol for the town

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Many owners, one palace

Some prestigious works

The interior and its masterpieces

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

The church of Carmine

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Wonderful quick decorations

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

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

A talking palace

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A small room with a golden entrance

Feast days

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A half-Baroque church

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

A long reconstruction

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Baroque town by the sea

A prominent church

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

A colourful floor

The internal colours

The colours of the cathedral

A triumph of colour

A hall for the feasts

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The disastrous earthquake

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Prominent façade

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

From International Gothic to present day

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Searching for colour

One city, three sites

The chocolate of Modica