The former church of San Biagio is an old deconsecrated church right in the old centre of Paternò, near the town hall, now reduced to an unsafe ruin. It is said to have been built in the seventeenth century, when the town moved from the hill to the plain below, and takes its name from the Company of San Biagio, which together with the Congregation of the priests of the Lume looked after the religious education of children; it was also dedicated to Saint John the Baptist.
What to see
The church is built of lava stone, with a Renaissance-style façade and a single portal topped by a small window; the interior has one deep nave and a presbytery with a semicircular apse. In 1942 it was bought by a local family of entrepreneurs, who used it as a store for the products of their mill, and in 1984 it was abandoned.
The cult of Saint Blaise of Sebaste has moved to a modern church, built thanks to the benefactor Michelangelo Virgillito on via Messina, in the quarter named after the saint.
Visiting
The building is ruined and unsafe: it can only be seen from outside.
Our editors' tip
A canvas of Saint Blaise by Vincenzo Avola, brought from the church of the same name, now hangs in the church of San Domenico, also in the old centre.
