Palazzolo Acreide

Some masterpieces

The church houses splendid works that complete and decorate the interior.
The altar area definitely attracts attention. Composed of a series of wonderful elements, the structure behind the altar is a carving masterpiece.
La struttura dietro l’altare La struttura dietro l’altare
It is richly elaborate and a dozen columns surmounted by putto heads complete the composition. The same attention to detail can be found in the use of colour on the lower part of the structure, completely in marble; the artist chose and combined fragments of blue, red, yellow and white marble.

A little above the altar is the painting by Paolo Tanasi completed in 1827.
The work depicts the Annunciation , one of the most important moments in Christian history when the angel announced to the Virgin Mary that she would give birth to the Messiah. Tanasi chose well-defined colours such as yellow, which highlights the shape of the angel, and blue, which emphasises the corporeality of the Virgin Mary.
In the transept you can see the Madonna del Carmelo (Our Lady of Mount Carmel) completely covered in gold. She shines from afar and demands attention. The right nave houses the statue of Santa Teresa (St. Theresa) and as usual, above one of the altars is the depiction of the Holy Family, the Virgin Mary, the Child and John the Baptist.
Un dipinto, dietro l’altare raffigura l’Annunciazione la statua di Santa Teresa Madonna del Carmelo, nel transetto

A hall for the feasts

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

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

The two churches

An eagle-shaped city

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

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

A new site for a new city

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

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A square as the heart of the city

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

A new site for a new church

The disastrous earthquake

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

The Baroque town by the sea

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

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

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

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

Discovering the mother church

The Maiolica of the staircase

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento

The Staircase of Angels

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The chocolate of Modica

Modica, a city with ancient origins

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

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

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

A symbol for the town

A feast only for Scicli

A majestic and luminous church

From International Gothic to present day

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

Some masterpieces

A colourful floor

Two illustrious patron saints

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

Some prestigious works

Feast days

A talking palace

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

Searching for colour

Norman apses

A city in colour

Many owners, one palace

Connections with other UNESCO sites

The theatre of taste

The colours of the cathedral

Wonderful quick decorations

The interior and its masterpieces

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

One city, two sites

A half-Baroque church

The façade used as a puppet theatre

A triumph of colour

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

Between white and black

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

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

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

One city, three sites

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

The city of museums

A prominent church

A museum to save a tradition

A Nobel Prize in Modica

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A long reconstruction

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

A miniature city

The internal colours

The wall comes to life

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

New roads for Catania

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

The church of Carmine

Feasting in Palazzolo

St. Sebastian, so much work!

The Burgos crucifix

A small room with a golden entrance

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours