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.

Norman apses

St. Agatha and the giant candelabras

The city of museums

The cathedral of Sant’Agata: a lengthy reconstruction

A long reconstruction

St. Sebastian, so much work!

A feast only for Scicli

The senses tell about Palazzo La Rocca

An eagle-shaped city

A half-Baroque church

A new site for a new church

Two illustrious patron saints

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

The interior and its masterpieces

The façade used as a puppet theatre

The senses tell about Palazzo Nicolaci

From St. Thomas to St. Joseph

The Feast of San Giacomo (St. James)

Prominent façade

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

New roads for Catania

The Benedictine Monastery, one of the largest in Europe

The Burgos crucifix

A colourful floor

Connections with other UNESCO sites

Many owners, one palace

Modica, a city with ancient origins

The colours of the cathedral

The Barresi-Branciforte lords

Feasting in Palazzolo

A city in colour

The Infiorata, a feast of colours and flowers

Discovering the mother church

A museum to save a tradition

Limestone, the colour of harmony

Rosario Gagliardi, the maestro of the Val di Noto

Baroque and the loss of equilibrium in the 16th century

Corbels: a celebration of the Nicolaci family

Feast days

The Staircase of Angels

A miniature city

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

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

The kitchen, a treasure chest of colours

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

Palazzo Nicolaci di Villadorata, who is the architect?

Searching for colour

A majestic and luminous church

The senses tell the story of the Church of Santa Chiara

The senses tell the Cathedral of Sant’Agata

The theatre of taste

Between white and black

A square as the heart of the city

San Benedetto: a treasure reopened to the public

Places of knowledge: the Benedictines’ library

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

A new entrance for Santa Chiara (St. Claire)

Wonderful quick decorations

The senses tell the story of the Church of the Annunciation

The senses tell about Palazzo Napolino Tommasi Rosso

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Sebastiano

A prominent church

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

The Maiolica of the staircase

Militello, the story of an enlightened fiefdom

A new site for a new city

A design by Vincenzo Sinatra

The disastrous earthquake

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

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

One city, two sites

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

Some prestigious works

The chocolate of Modica

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

A hall for the feasts

The senses tell the story of the Church of San Benedetto

The internal colours

From International Gothic to present day

Some masterpieces

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

The senses tell the story of the church of San Giuseppe

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

Garden of Novices and the restorations by Giancarlo De Carlo

A triumph of colour

Fontana della Ninfa Zizza, public water in the town

The church of Carmine

The wall comes to life

A new palace for the La Rocca lords

A talking palace

The character of Badia Sant’Agata

A Nobel Prize in Modica

One city, three sites

San Nicolò l’Arena: an unfinished church

A symbol for the town

The Baroque town by the sea

The two churches

A small room with a golden entrance

The Supernatural dimension of the chapel of the Santissimo Sacramento