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.

Feasting in Palazzolo

A half-Baroque church

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

From International Gothic to present day

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

Discovering the mother church

A new site for a new church

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

One city, two sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The Staircase of Angels

One city, three sites

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

Some masterpieces

Two illustrious patron saints

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

Feast days

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The interior and its masterpieces

The Baroque town by the sea

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A small room with a golden entrance

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A long reconstruction

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

New roads for Catania

A museum to save a tradition

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The chocolate of Modica

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A city in colour

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Prominent façade

Some prestigious works

A feast only for Scicli

The disastrous earthquake

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The church of Carmine

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The city of museums

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A symbol for the town

The colours of the cathedral

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A square as the heart of the city

Searching for colour

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

An eagle-shaped city

The two churches

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Many owners, one palace

The internal colours

The Maiolica of the staircase

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

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

A miniature city

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

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

A prominent church

The theatre of taste

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The Burgos crucifix

A hall for the feasts

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Wonderful quick decorations

A new site for a new city

Norman apses

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The wall comes to life

Between white and black

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A talking palace

A colourful floor