Church of Saint Lorenzo

The richly decorated baroque facade of the Church of San Lorenzo – or of Purgatory – faces onto a little square in the higher part of via Atenea. White limestone decorations are beautifully set off against the honey-coloured sandstone facade. The majestic portal is flanked by twisted columns with Corinthian Capitels and sculptures representing Faith and Charity. The church is no longer used for religious purposes and has been turned into a venue for exhibitions and events organized by MUDIA. The interior of the church has a single nave and is enhanced by paintings and feminine statues representing the Seven Virtues, attributed to the scholars of the famous baroque sculptor from Palermo, Giacomo Serpotta. The white stuccoes contrast starkly with the wooden pulpit and the two confessionals, both decorated with engravings depicting the Souls of Purgatory, a recurring theme in the decorations of this church. Externally, to the left of the church, a stone lion statue guards over the entrance to an ancient Hypogeum which is part of the extensive network of underground aqueducts engineered in the 5^th century BC by the Greek architect Faece to supply water to the ancient and prosperous city of Akragas and its reservoir located in the Kolymbethra.