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 kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

Wonderful quick decorations

A half-Baroque church

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

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

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

A miniature city

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The church of Carmine

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

A new site for a new church

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

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

The colours of the cathedral

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A small room with a golden entrance

The theatre of taste

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Feast days

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

Discovering the mother church

Limestone, the colour of harmony

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

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

Norman apses

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Many owners, one palace

A prominent church

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

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

St. Sebastian, so much work!

Two illustrious patron saints

A colourful floor

Prominent façade

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

A feast only for Scicli

Feasting in Palazzolo

A hall for the feasts

A symbol for the town

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

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

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

One city, two sites

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The two churches

An eagle-shaped city

The chocolate of Modica

The Burgos crucifix

A new site for a new city

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

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

A long reconstruction

New roads for Catania

Some prestigious works

A Nobel Prize in Modica

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

One city, three sites

Between white and black

The interior and its masterpieces

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

A majestic and luminous church

The internal colours

A triumph of colour

A talking palace

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

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

The disastrous earthquake

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

The city of museums

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

A museum to save a tradition

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

The Maiolica of the staircase

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Some masterpieces

From International Gothic to present day

A city in colour

The wall comes to life

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

Searching for colour

The Baroque town by the sea