4. Church of Our Lady of Grace

The Church of Our Lady of Grace destroyed by the great earthquake, rebuilt but never completed (Fig. a), has only one order; the façade is characterised by four mighty twin columns, with Corinthian capitals protruding from the convex central part (Fig. b), containing a majestic portal bordered by a cornice projecting from the masonry and two side festoons twisting at the top, each with a shell in the centre (Fig. c).
Of the first sanctuary, designed by the Syracuse architect Vincenzo Mirabella, one of the portals remains, located on the west side façade. The portal is decorated with a broken tympanum, supported by two columns, set on high pedestals, crowned by an arch decorated with interlaced patterns (Fig. d).
To the side, set back, are four more columns, two on each side, and to the left of the façade is the unfinished bell tower. The Church was built on the discovery site of an image depicting a Madonna with the child in her arms (Fig. e), painted on a slate slab, believed to be miraculous for having remained intact in a bush that burned for three days. Today, the image is kept on the main altar of the church.
The interior has three naves, separated by pillars supporting a trabeation where the central round-arched vault with lunettes on the sides is set (Fig. f).