MINISTERO PER I BENI the restoration of the monastery of san domenico maggiore E LE ATTIVITÀ CULTURALI

ASSESSORATO ALLA CULTURA E AL TURISMO the monastery soprintendenza per comune di napoli i beni architettonici, assessorato alla cultura of san domenico paesaggistici,storici, artistici e al turismo ed etnoantropologici per napoli assessore antonella di nocera maggiore e provincia soprintendente giorgio cozzolino direzione centrale cultura, sport a ten centuries e turismo e servizio patrimonio soprintendenza speciale per artistico e beni culturali long story il patrimonio storico, artistico direttore silvana dello russo for Quarantore prayers”, a complex machinery that will 2000 and it has been competed in 2002 including the ed etnoantropolgico e per il polo The monastery of San Domenico Maggiore, together the first floor there were the refectory, the library and be one of the most important points of attraction when project Polis-Musea organized by Superintendence with the church, forms a large structure which is the re- the “Sala del Capitolo”. The architects who worked at museale della città di napoli visiting hours these areas will be arranged as museum. for historical patrimony of with European sult of many changes started in 1227 when Pope Greg- this magnificent structure were: Bonaventura, Presti Restored area was about 7000 mq whose 400mq Community’s co-financing by FESR Funds (Financial soprintendente fabrizio vona monday - saturday, 10am - 5pm ory IX sent to Naples a small group of Dominicans who ,Francesco Antonio Picchiatti and Luigi Nauclerio. where the courtrooms of Corte d’Assise were and 300 grants for Historic Centre of Naples); the second part settled in the ancient monastery of San Michele Arcan- Now the monastery is divided in different areas: one mq where the part of school Casanova are now com- began in May 2006 and it has been completed in July written by info gelo in Morfisa, in origin founded by Basilians monks. part is occupied by Dominican monks, another area pletely consolidated. A large workgroup of Superinten- 201 (financed by the low 20.12.2000, n. 400, art. 1 orsola foglia [of] osservatorio turistico Between 1272 and 1274 taught philos- at the same floor of the cloister is occupied by Virtus dence for historical patrimony of Naples and Province “Restoration on cultural heritage” after the APQ be- ida maietta [im] tel. 081 7956160/61/62 ophy in San Domenico in the Studium wanted by Carlo Gym; the high school Casanova occupies other three has been engaged to repair this structure. This com- tween the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities osservatorio.turistico@ I D’Angiò. In 1289 the monastery was rebuilt extending floors and the largest part where until 1990’s there plex work has been executed also with the help and and Regione ). translated by comune.napoli.it its dimensions so that it was even compared, in the were the courtrooms of Corte d’Assise is at present experience of external consultant. The Convent was reopened to public in May 2012 with noemi cucciniello www.comune.napoli.it idea of many visitors of different historical ages, to a subject to restorations. The repairs started in 2000 and the work was di- the common effort of local and government institutions. city inside a city. It reached its maximum development The recovery of these large areas that contained cells vided in two different parts. The first part started in [of] after the rebuilding in 1669 wanted by Tommaso Ruffo, and courtroom with the structures of mezzanines, ceil- pictures the grand Prior of Bagnara, who invested large part of ings, incongruous buildings, was characterized by re- pictures lab his patrimony for that restoration as he wanted to save storing the original spaced and architectonical charac- della soprintendenza per i beni the hearth of the structure, as the room occupied by teristics and the links between ambient and its features. architettonici, paesaggistici, storici, Saint Thomas Aquinas, symbol of ancient times. The An important part of the restorations was dedicated artistici ed etnoantropologici restorations continued during the Sixteenth century to the decorative skin of these rooms with the restora- per napoli e provincia and in this period there were a big factory with three tion of ancient frescoes and stuccos of Sixteenth cen- parts: Saint Thomas’ dorm, the novitiate and dorm of tury and of the Saint Thomas’ dorm, fully decorated Masters placed around a free area destined to become in twenties of Sixteenth century, and of several vest- a garden. Adjacent to the dormitory of Saint Thomas at ments among which the structure “liturgical machine the big refectory the room called the corridor and st. thomas aquinas’ cell

The Refectory was built above the The room called “Sala del Capitolo” former infirmary of the convent dur- is one of the most noticeable spaces The restoration of the main dormi- ing the enlargement and renovation built during the enlargement works tory of the convent was appropri- works, undertaken by Tommaso of the convent, started by the prior ately named “St. Thomas’ dormi- Ruffo of the Dukes of Bagnara, who Tommaso Ruffo. In this room, the tory” due to the presence of the was the Prior of San Domenico Mag- vault and the walls are decorated saint’s cell which was completed in giore from 1668 to 1672. The reno- with stuccos by artists from the 1685. We can date, in the following vations began in 1669 and lasted baroque master Cosimo Fanzago years, the twenty-five mural paint- until after 1672, enlarging the prior school, and with paintings of the Si- ings depicting the main moments of architectural structure in an impres- cilian painter Michele Ragolia, who St. Thomas’ life. These were painted sive way. One of the most noticeable began to fresco the “Capitolo” room along both sides of the corridor and of the spaces built during the reno- in 1677. The decoration of the room above the entrance of friars’ cells. vation works is The Big Refectory, was completed by Ragolia in 1678 The paintings can be attributed to which has a considerable size; it was and includes the Calvary scene on the late seventeenth century paint- intended to accommodate over one On the side walls of the Refectory the back wall, a series of frescoes de- er, Domenico Viola. hundred monks during the seven- there were two long dining tables the small refectory picting scenes of the Mysteries of the the library After the restoration works, the teenth and eighteenth centuries. with piperno seats, decorated with Rosary and the Passion of Christ and round paintings that looked “sus- On the back wall of the Big Refec- carved wooden backs that cov- Next to the big Refectory, there is ten rounds depicting angels bearing The library of San Domenico Mag- The collection of books, which in- After the suppressions of 1809 and pended” above the front doors of tory you can see a fresco depicting ered the walls and at the sides of the small Refectory that was built the Symbols of the Passion of Christ. giore has been considered one creased over time, included four 1865, the books of the library were the cells, were found to be parts a perspective scene, painted in 1675 the entrance there were two large during the enlargement works of The structure seemed to be impaired of the most important libraries in of Pontano’s own writings, manu- partly dispersed and partly merged of a more complex decoration with by (as evi- hand basins made by white marble, the convent, started in 1669 by the since 1686 due to the weight of the Naples since the fifteenth century scripts of the Aeneid and the Odys- in the collections of the National cherubs lying on architectural vo- denced by the documents), who is called “bardiglio”, created ​​in 1675 Prior Tommaso Ruffo. The room overlying friars’ dormitory. This and it has been enriched over time sey, the works by Xenophon and Library and the University Library. lutes, racemes and scrolls with epi- well known as an architect but also by the marble carver Giovanni Ca- was intended to host the sick friars. caused detachments of the stuccos thanks to acquisitions and dona- Aristotle, Plautus comedies, the De The room contained shelves for grams reflective of St. Thomas’ life. as the author of perspective mural millo Ragozzino. Today it appears completely bare and the collapse of the central parts tions of private individuals and arte amandi by Ovid , texts by Cicero, books and bookstands and it was The other elements of the decora- paintings for important Neapolitan The dining tables, the seats and the but at its origin as the big Refectory, of the frescoes in the late 19th centu- monks of the convent. Housed in a the Epistles by Seneca, the De Trini- decorated with a series of large tion have been recovered, even if churches. At the center of the fresco basins have been lost over time, there were tables and chairs along ry, when the frescoes were repaint- large room at the first floor, next to tate and the Homiliae by St. Augus- paintings contained in the oval fram- partially, in the part of the corridor you can see the Last Supper scene, during the years after the abolition the walls with a back decorated with ed. A double row of richly carved St. Thomas Aquinas’ cell, the library tine. Among the printed works was ing on the walls. [im] inhabited nowadays by friars. painted by Guglielmelli, whereas the of monastic orders in 1865, when caryatids and corbels. A large paint- seats decorated the walls of the has been enriched at the beginning also the Metaphysics by Aristotle. The most remarkable evidence of background scene that represents the monks were expelled from the ing on the back wall depicting St. room and meant to accommodate of the sixteenth century. The en- In 1685 the convent council decided the presence of St. Thomas Aqui- mounted by a bust of the saint built ings. The famous thirteenth-century the Cavalry scene was added at the convent for twenty years and this Dominic dining with his friars and be- the monks in the most important richment was thanks to the fund of to assign the restoration works to the nas in San Domenico Maggiore in 1720 by Matteo Bottiglieri, was panel depicts the Crucifix placed on end of the nineteenth century. room, together with the other ones, ing served by angels completed the moments of the community life. [im] Gioviano Pontano, donated by the architect Francesco Antonio Picchi- consists of the cell where he lived adapted as a chapel in 1727 by the the altar, in front of which St. Thomas, Above the entrance of the Refec- was first used as a store and later decoration, together with ten paint- daughter of the illustrious human- atti, placing him in charge of restor- between 1272 and 1274. It was at architect Muzio Nauclerio. in prayer, had a vision of Christ. [im] tory you can see the wall painting occupied by the Court of Assizes ings on the side walls. [im] ist. During the second part of the ing the library “all back to lamia.” The that time that he held the chair in Altered by heavy renovation works, depicting St. Thomas Aquinas pray- until 1990s. [im] sixteenth century, two illustrious fri- impressive structure of the room re- the Theological Study, which was the room has been recovered by the ing in front of the Crucifix, painted ars, and Tommaso flects the main features of the archi- established in the same convent. current restoration which has allowed by the little-known painter Antonio Campanella, attended the library of tectural language of Picchiatti, who The small room, which is accessed the renewal of the original two-color Rossi d’Aversa in 1727. San Domenico Maggiore. led restorations until 1694. by a variegated marble portal, sur- lacquered and gilded wooden ceil-