Church of the Holy Trinity in Petralia Sottana
The Church of the Holy Trinity of Petralia Sottana, better known as La Badia, and the adjacent Dominican cloistered monastery, constitute an important building of cult of the village.
They were built in the 16th century by the will of Maria Ventimiglia Countess of Collesano. The complex underwent major alterations and extensions in the 1600s. The Monastery was famous for the solemnity of its religious functions, made possible by the considerable income it had.
The church has a tuff facade and a stone and iron rose window. The entrance consists of a large vaulted ceiling with lunettes that supports the choir. Large wrought iron grates allowed the cloistered nuns to attend religious services. Two confessionals embedded in the wall and two small doors decorated with figures of angels made it possible to distribute communion to the nuns.
Of particular value is an ancient wooden organ with a baroque register made in 1751 by Baldassarre Di Paola and Ignazio Faraci. The organ is painted in all its parts, supported by a balcony decorated with motifs of carved floral spirals, roses and other vegetal patterns. It also features a particular water device, known as uccelleria, which manages to reproduce the song of birds.
Another work of considerable value is the immense marble altarpiece with a polychrome background which covers almost the entire surface of the high altar, made by the sculptor Giandomenico Gagini before 1543. The bas-relief polyptych tells the stories of the life of Christ from the Annunciation to the transfiguration in 23 framed panels between candelabra and decorative reliefs, and surmounted by a tympanum with the effigy of the Imago Trinitas, and closed at the bottom by a predella with the apostles.
Among the other noteworthy works are: a 17th century canvas of the Mercy of God; the 18th century canvas of the Madonna del Rosario by Raffaele Visalli, a canvas of 1852 by the romantic painter Andrea D’Antoni, represents the Deposition from the Cross.
