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 Burgos crucifix

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

A triumph of colour

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A symbol for the town

A colourful floor

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

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The Maiolica of the staircase

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

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A long reconstruction

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

A half-Baroque church

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A small room with a golden entrance

Many owners, one palace

A majestic and luminous church

The Staircase of Angels

A talking palace

From International Gothic to present day

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Searching for colour

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Two illustrious patron saints

Between white and black

Prominent façade

The internal colours

The disastrous earthquake

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

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The theatre of taste

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

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

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The city of museums

A prominent church

A museum to save a tradition

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

Some masterpieces

A miniature city

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Norman apses

Discovering the mother church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

One city, two sites

The two churches

The wall comes to life

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

An eagle-shaped city

A city in colour

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

A feast only for Scicli

A new site for a new church

Some prestigious works

Feasting in Palazzolo

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The church of Carmine

A new site for a new city

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A square as the heart of the city

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Baroque town by the sea

A hall for the feasts

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

New roads for Catania

Feast days

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The chocolate of Modica

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

One city, three sites

The interior and its masterpieces

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Barresi-Branciforte lords