Church of the Purgatory

The Church of the Purgatory was built between 1642 and 1664 on the site of a former church. It has a scenic eighteenth century façade with late-Mannerist and Baroque features. The three-nave interior is divided by columns and adorned with stuccos and frescoes. The apse decoration, carried out by Castelvetrano-born Nicola and Gaspare Curti, dates back to 1746. While the impressive painting that depicts the Trinity, the Virgin and the Holy souls in Purgatory has been attributed to Olivio Sozzi and although originally intended for the main altar it is now kept in the Mother Church. Inside the church during the Christmas period it is possible to admire a magnificent mechanical nativity scene, created using natural materials such as cork, stone, tree trunks, succulent plants, moss and grass. By use of mechanic devices the birth of Jesus Christ is recreated.