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NAPLES STREETS and SQUARES
- Main characteristic streets and squares in Naples Italy - |
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PIAZZA DEL PLEBISCITO
PIAZZA DEL PLEBISCITO, NAPLES ITALY
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Piazza del Plebiscito
Piazza del Plebiscito, Naples |
Piazza del Plebiscito - Arriving from Piazza Trieste and Trento, visitors will find themselves facing one of the most beautiful and monumental squares in Naples. At the foot of the Pizzofalcone hills, with its districts in the background, and the following dominating the square; the Church of San Francesco of Paola with its spectacular colonnades dating back to the end of the 17th Century, at the side of Palazzo Salerno, also from the end of the 17th Century, the Palazzo della Prefettura (Prefecture Building) from 1815, and to the east the spectacular façade of the Royal Palace, behind which opens up an incredible panoramic view towards Santa Lucia, Vesuvius, part of the Gulf to one side of the Sorrentine Coast and Capri. Amidst the semi-eclipsed parts of the square, there are two equestrian statues by Antonio Canova, representing Carlo di Borbone and Ferdinando I.
Adjacent to Piazza del Plebiscito, Piazza Trieste e Trento are surrounded by prestigious facades: on the north side, the San Carlo Theatre and on the south, the Royal Palace. The Church of San Ferdinando, the name by which the square was called at one time, is situated on the side of the Theatre and dates back to 1636. A famous attraction to the square is the Caffè Gambrinus, unique for its furnishings, fruit of the inspiration of numerous Neapolitan artists, remains unchanged since the end of the 19th Century. From the beginning of the last century it has been a favourite meeting place for many artists, intellectuals and Neapolitan politicians.
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GALLERIA UMBERTO
PIAZZA DEL PLEBISCITO 1, NAPLES |
Galleria Umberto I |
Galleria Umberto I is one of the most elegant and refined Arcades in Italy; a typical 19th Century and Umbertina construction from 1887. It has been a social meeting centre for the Neapolitan aristocracy and artistic world from the beautiful eras. A majestic structure with characteristic iron and glass coverings, rising up to the huge dome, measuring 36 metres by almost 57 metres in height. The walls and colonnades are richly decorated in plaster; whilst on the opposite side is the Theatre San Carlo in marble. The Gallery hosted the first singing café opened in Italy in 1890, the Salone Margherita, sadly now closed.
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SPACCANAPOLI
PIAZZA DEL MUNICIPIO, NAPLES
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SpaccaNapoli
San Gregorio Armeno |
Spaccanapoli got its name due to the fact that it cut the City into two perfect halves, from the hills of San Martino to Forcella, since the beginning of the 20th Century. The road is in itself a work of art: built on a typical structure resembling a chess board from the Greek colonies, and almost still intact. The axis on which it extends was the extension of the lower Decuman towards the West. Further along the road, there are squares, residences, churches and spires of extraordinary artistic and cultural value, like the buildings and Renaissance homes which the Neapolitan nobles had built. The sights begin from Monteoliveto: In Piazza del Gesù, visitors can admire the Chiesa del Gesù Nuovo (New Church of Christ), which was constructed for the Jesuits in 1584. In front of that there's the Guglia dell'Immacolata, (Spire of the Immaculate) dating back to 1747. After a short distance, there's the monumental complex of Santa Chiara, with the church and cloister dating back to 1310. Between the Monastery and Piazza San Domenico, from the Aragonese age, visitors can see the 14th Century residence, Filomarino della Rocca, Palazzo Corigliano, Palazzo Sangro Sansevero and the Piazzetta del Nilo with its headless Hellenistic statue, which was found in the medieval era. Directly afterwards, visitors will come across the Via dei Pastori (Road) San Gregorio Armeno with its homonymous church and beautiful suspended bell tower, known throughout the world for its evocative cribs, which the Neapolitan artisans produce by tradition. |
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| PIAZZA SAN DOMENICO MAGGIORE
PIAZZA SAN DOMENICO MAGGIORE |
Piazza San Domenico Maggiore
Piazza del Gesù |
One of the most beautiful works of the Aragonese in Naples is Piazza San Domenico Maggiore which was opened by Alfonso I and isdominated by the homonymous church and by the "guglia" (spire), requested by the populace after the Plague of 1656; but which was completed only in 1737 by Antonio Domenico Vaccaro. Then visitors can admire the three buildings surrounding the Palazzo di Sangro di Casacalenda, which was completed by Luigi Vanvitelli, the Palazzo Petrucci, dating back to the beginning of the 15th Century and the Palazzo Saluzzo by Corigliano, seat of the modern day Istituto Universitario Orientale (Oriental University Institute), built during the 16th Century, and which preserves the remains of a structure from the Greek and Roman times.
Piazza del Gesù - In this most important square of the City, visitors can visit the Chiesa del Gesù Nuovo (New Church of Christ), built between 1584-1601, the Casa Professa dei Gesuiti (the proclaimed house of the Jesuits) and a part of the Cathedral of Santa Chiara. In the middle of the square, there's the splendid Spire of the Immaculate, built on request of the Jesuits to celebrate the important preaching place of their order in 1747. This spire was built thanks to the public funds that were raised. The spire rises up magnificently replacing an equestrian statue by Vaccaro of Filippo V, which was knocked down in fury by the populace when the Austrians entered the City.
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PIAZZA DANTE
PIAZZA DANTE, NAPLES |
Piazza Dante
 Piazza Dante, for centuries an important centre of the City, is a neuralgic point for all movements in the City and for the activities of its citizens. Home of an old market, it was in fact once called Largo del Mercatello, which housed huge oil and grain storage warehouses for the City towards the end of the 16th Century. Carlo III of Bourbon gave the task to Luigi Vanvitelli to construct a Carolino Forum, with border space for his statues, but it was never realized and in its place, during the 19th Century, the statue of the famous poet with the same name as the Square, was erected. The hemicycle of the forum is adorned by twenty six allegorical statutes, situated high above and representing the virtues of the King. In 1843, an entrance in the small niche was opened in the Jesuit boarding school, which then became the boarding of Vittorio Emanuele; which still preserves two cloisters today; one as an important testimony of the Romanesque and Gothic periods, whilst the other preserves a 16th Century structure. On the left of the hemicycle, the port'Alba (doorway) was opened in 1625 and reconstructed in 1797. There's a bronze statue of San Gaetano on the door. Recently redesigned, it has a very simple structure, the pedestrian area is ample and the flooring is in lava stone.
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PIAZZA DEL MUNICIPIO
NO PIC AVAILABLE
PIAZZA DEL MUNICIPIO, NAPLES
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Piazza del Municipio
Piazza del Municipio - Constructed from a rectangular flat space, opening onto the gulf, the square is the political and administrative centre, as well as the touristic area of the City; due to the close proximity of the Beverello Pier which almost seems as though it's its continuation. Here, from the beginning of the last century, ships from all over the world docked here. The simple structure of the square, adorned with flower beds, flowers and trees, accommodates the San Giacomo building, seat of the municipality, and once upon a time containing the 16th Century Church of San Giacomo. On the southern side of the square, visitors can marvel at the majestic Castel Nuovo (New Castle) or the Maschio Angioino, as it was called by the Neapolitans of the 17th Century, part of the extension of the Royal Palace, the Mercadante Theatre of 1778. The monument of Vittorio Emanuele II and the statue of the Partenope, rise up in the centre of the square. Over the last few years, construction work on the underground has brought to light three Roman Imperial Ships from the 1st Century after Christ, which were covered in seaweed and water, and therefore still well preserved to date.
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