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| you are in INT //Photo tour/Streets and sqaures of Naples |
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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. |
SPACCANAPOLI
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It got its name due to the fact that it cut the City into two |
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One
of the most beautiful works of the Aragonese in Naples is Piazza
SanDomenico
Maggiorewhich 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 Bellini - At the centre of the square, rectangular in shape, we can admire the monument to Vincenzo Bellini from 1886; unfortunately subject of theft, which deprived it of its small statues representing all the heroines of the works of Bellini. Certain digs have brought to light some walls, originally Greek from the 4th Century BC, made from tufa blocks; one orthostatically. The Convent of S. Antonio a Port'Alba in the square, preceded by a very beautiful 8th Century staircase, was incorporated with the Palazzo dei Principi di Conca, on which we can find a wall doorway from the 5th Century. During the reconstruction of the building, a humanistic Library was opened. Piazza Bellini is very close to Port'Alba and Piazza Dante, and is well frequented by the young students from the Academy of Beautiful Arts and from the Universities in the area: the night is alive with its bars, literary coffee bars, famous for their welcoming atmosphere as well as prestigious visits from: Raffaele, Viviani, Benedetto Croce, Guttuso and Picasso. |
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© IN NAPLES TODAY 1999
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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.
Galleria
Umberto I - 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.
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.
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.