Chiesa San Giovanni Evangelista (Madonna delle Grazie)

Ancient and important church, it was one of the parishes of Vizzini. The Di Marzio Ferro states that the Church was built on the ruins of two pagan temples dedicated to Minerva and Bacchus and thus writes referring to it: "... the figure of the owl ... is the famous sign consecrated by the Athenians to the Goddess Minerva, in a monument of their alliance and confederation made by the ancient Bidinesi with them. The sculpture of the owl originally existed above the ancient gate of the city to the west, from where it was later transported over the building of the parish of St. John the Evangelist, to whose district the name of the Cucco (name of the "Civetta) became today you can admire the sculpture of the owl on the south elevation of the Mother Church of Vizzini ". The church is also dedicated to St. John the Apostle; it was destroyed in 1693 by the earthquake and rebuilt. It has a single-nave plan and a façade decorated with a Gothic portal. Inside, according to the architect Valente, the following art objects are kept: • a small tombstone from the 14th century, with characters carved in relief; • a wooden painting depicting the Madonna and Child Jesus closed by a baroque frame • an ancient alabaster statue of the Madonna delle Grazie, placed in a niche in the apse, with the precious golden coffin, of the Gaginian school; • a Madonna with a star in the chest; • a painting by S. Agata, S. Antonio, Maria Maddalena, S. Paolo Eremita; • a glass of 1002. We also find canvases depicting Saint Joseph holding the Child on his arms, the plaster statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the marble baptismal font, the Via Crucis painted on wood from the 18th century. The church is also known as the Church of the Madonna of the Water or of Monserrato.