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 Baroque town by the sea

Many owners, one palace

A city in colour

An eagle-shaped city

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A museum to save a tradition

Feast days

A new site for a new city

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The façade used as a puppet theatre

Connections with other UNESCO sites

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A half-Baroque church

The Staircase of Angels

A square as the heart of the city

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

A triumph of colour

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Some prestigious works

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The theatre of taste

A symbol for the town

Norman apses

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

The church of Carmine

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A prominent church

A new site for a new church

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The internal colours

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

From International Gothic to present day

The wall comes to life

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A talking palace

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

One city, two sites

Between white and black

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

A majestic and luminous church

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Wonderful quick decorations

The disastrous earthquake

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

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

The interior and its masterpieces

One city, three sites

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

Searching for colour

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

A Nobel Prize in Modica

The city of museums

Two illustrious patron saints

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Limestone, the colour of harmony

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

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

Discovering the mother church

New roads for Catania

Prominent façade

A long reconstruction

The chocolate of Modica

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The two churches

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

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

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

The Maiolica of the staircase

Feasting in Palazzolo

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A colourful floor

A feast only for Scicli

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Some masterpieces

A miniature city

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A small room with a golden entrance