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 prominent church

Feast days

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

Wonderful quick decorations

One city, three sites

Modica, a city with ancient origins

A miniature city

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

An eagle-shaped city

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

A square as the heart of the city

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

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

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

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

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

The internal colours

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

New roads for Catania

The Baroque town by the sea

A colourful floor

A long reconstruction

Some prestigious works

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A majestic and luminous church

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A Nobel Prize in Modica

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

A feast only for Scicli

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Searching for colour

Between white and black

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

From International Gothic to present day

The disastrous earthquake

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

Many owners, one palace

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

The city of museums

The theatre of taste

A new site for a new city

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The wall comes to life

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Feasting in Palazzolo

Discovering the mother church

One city, two sites

A triumph of colour

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

A city in colour

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

A talking palace

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

A symbol for the town

The church of Carmine

The Staircase of Angels

A small room with a golden entrance

A new site for a new church

The Maiolica of the staircase

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The interior and its masterpieces

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

The chocolate of Modica

The façade used as a puppet theatre

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Some masterpieces

The Burgos crucifix

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

Two illustrious patron saints

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Limestone, the colour of harmony

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

Norman apses

The colours of the cathedral

A hall for the feasts

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

A half-Baroque church

A museum to save a tradition

The two churches