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.

A square as the heart of the city

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

Many owners, one palace

Prominent façade

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

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

The two churches

The colours of the cathedral

A new site for a new city

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A city in colour

An eagle-shaped city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Feast days

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

Some masterpieces

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A museum to save a tradition

One city, two sites

Between white and black

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

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A small room with a golden entrance

Discovering the mother church

The Staircase of Angels

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Wonderful quick decorations

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Searching for colour

A talking palace

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The city of museums

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

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

A prominent church

A new site for a new church

A colourful floor

A half-Baroque church

The internal colours

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

A miniature city

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A triumph of colour

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

A majestic and luminous church

The Maiolica of the staircase

The theatre of taste

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Feasting in Palazzolo

The disastrous earthquake

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

A symbol for the town

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The wall comes to life

The interior and its masterpieces

From International Gothic to present day

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

One city, three sites

New roads for Catania

The chocolate of Modica

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Baroque town by the sea

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A hall for the feasts

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The Burgos crucifix

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

A feast only for Scicli

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

Two illustrious patron saints

The church of Carmine

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

A long reconstruction

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Connections with other UNESCO sites

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

Modica, a city with ancient origins

Some prestigious works

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Norman apses

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano