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

Feasting in Palazzolo

Many owners, one palace

A city in colour

The wall comes to life

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A half-Baroque church

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

A prominent church

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

The colours of the cathedral

A colourful floor

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

A talking palace

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Prominent façade

One city, three sites

Searching for colour

Two illustrious patron saints

Wonderful quick decorations

Norman apses

A new site for a new church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

A new site for a new city

The façade used as a puppet theatre

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Connections with other UNESCO sites

A museum to save a tradition

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Some masterpieces

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

A hall for the feasts

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

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

A symbol for the town

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

The internal colours

The Burgos crucifix

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A square as the heart of the city

Feast days

The interior and its masterpieces

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The church of Carmine

A feast only for Scicli

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

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

The chocolate of Modica

A small room with a golden entrance

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

A long reconstruction

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The two churches

An eagle-shaped city

A majestic and luminous church

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Modica, a city with ancient origins

New roads for Catania

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The theatre of taste

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

The city of museums

From International Gothic to present day

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The Baroque town by the sea

The disastrous earthquake

Discovering the mother church

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

One city, two sites

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

A miniature city

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

Some prestigious works

The Maiolica of the staircase

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

A triumph of colour

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

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

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Between white and black