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 senses tell the Benedictine Monastery and San NicoIò l’Arena

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

An eagle-shaped city

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

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

Two illustrious patron saints

Discovering the mother church

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The disastrous earthquake

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

A new site for a new city

The wall comes to life

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Prominent façade

The chocolate of Modica

The interior and its masterpieces

The Baroque town by the sea

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

Wonderful quick decorations

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

A miniature city

A triumph of colour

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

From International Gothic to present day

A half-Baroque church

Searching for colour

A small room with a golden entrance

Some prestigious works

A museum to save a tradition

The city of museums

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

New roads for Catania

A hall for the feasts

Between white and black

The church of Carmine

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A talking palace

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

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A Nobel Prize in Modica

One city, three sites

Norman apses

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Many owners, one palace

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

The theatre of taste

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Feasting in Palazzolo

A majestic and luminous church

Some masterpieces

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

A city in colour

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

A prominent church

A long reconstruction

A square as the heart of the city

The Staircase of Angels

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The two churches

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

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

A new site for a new church

A symbol for the town

Feast days

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The internal colours

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A colourful floor

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

One city, two sites

The Maiolica of the staircase