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.

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The church of Carmine

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A miniature city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The interior and its masterpieces

A small room with a golden entrance

A symbol for the town

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

From International Gothic to present day

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A long reconstruction

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The theatre of taste

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A square as the heart of the city

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Feasting in Palazzolo

One city, two sites

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A colourful floor

The colours of the cathedral

An eagle-shaped city

New roads for Catania

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The Maiolica of the staircase

A city in colour

A hall for the feasts

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Baroque town by the sea

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

A talking palace

Many owners, one palace

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

The Staircase of Angels

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

A new site for a new church

The Burgos crucifix

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

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The internal colours

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Searching for colour

A half-Baroque church

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Between white and black

Norman apses

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A majestic and luminous church

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Wonderful quick decorations

Prominent façade

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

Feast days

A feast only for Scicli

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

A new site for a new city

A prominent church

Some masterpieces

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

Discovering the mother church

Two illustrious patron saints

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

A museum to save a tradition

The city of museums

One city, three sites

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A triumph of colour

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

The two churches

The disastrous earthquake

The chocolate of Modica

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The wall comes to life

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso