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.

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

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

Many owners, one palace

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A museum to save a tradition

Two illustrious patron saints

A long reconstruction

One city, three sites

The theatre of taste

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

Prominent façade

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Some masterpieces

Wonderful quick decorations

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

A symbol for the town

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

A talking palace

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The façade used as a puppet theatre

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Between white and black

The Burgos crucifix

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

New roads for Catania

A colourful floor

A small room with a golden entrance

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The colours of the cathedral

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A hall for the feasts

From International Gothic to present day

One city, two sites

A new site for a new city

A city in colour

Discovering the mother church

Limestone, the colour of harmony

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Feast days

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A triumph of colour

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

Some prestigious works

A new site for a new church

A miniature city

The disastrous earthquake

A prominent church

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

The wall comes to life

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

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The internal colours

The two churches

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Searching for colour

A square as the heart of the city

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A feast only for Scicli

The Baroque town by the sea

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

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

The church of Carmine

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The city of museums

The chocolate of Modica

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Norman apses

The Staircase of Angels

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

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

An eagle-shaped city

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A majestic and luminous church

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Maiolica of the staircase

A half-Baroque church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata