San Francesco delle Monache is a

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

-style church located in via Santa Chiara, in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

History

A church at the site was first constructed for the nuns of an Order of St Clare in the 14th century by Robert of Anjou and his wife. His wife, once widowed, entered this monastery. The Blessed Costanza Starace also once resided here. The initial layout was attributed to Masuccio II, but further reconstructions and decorations proceeded in 1646 and 1750. The architects Bartolomeo Vecchione and Crescenzo Torchese were involved in the latter reconstructions, including the facade. Much of the artwork has been moved or lost. The ceiling canvases in the nave were attributed to Balducci and his disciples. Other works made for the church or chapels were attributed to Andrea Malinconico;

Giovanni Battista Caracciolo Giovanni Battista Caracciolo (also called Battistello) (1578–1635) was an Italian artist and important Neapolitan follower of Caravaggio. He was a member of the murderous Cabal of Naples, with Belisario Corenzio and Giambattista Caracciolo, wh ...

; a ''Virgin with St Anthony of Padua and Elizabeth of Hungary'' by

Antonio Stabile Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular male ...

, pupil of

Silvestro Bruno Silvestro de Buoni (died 1484) was an Italian painter of the early-Renaissance period, specifically the Quattrocento in Naples. Also called ''Silvestro de Buono'', son of Buono de' Buoni. He was the pupil of the painter Lo Zingaro and Donzelli. He ...

; and a ''Virgin of the Rosary with St Domenic, Rose, Gennaro, and Barbara'' by Giacinto Popoli, pupil of

Massimo Stanzione Massimo Stanzione (also called Stanzioni; 1585 – 1656) was an Italian Baroque painter, mainly active in Naples, where he and his rival Jusepe de Ribera dominated the painting scene for several decades. He was primarily a painter of altarpiece ...

.Guida Sacra della citta di Napoli
per Gennaro Aspreno Galante, 1873, page 144-145. Suppressed in 1805, the Complex has recently become a school. Torchese completed the interior polychrome marble decorations of the church. The church now hosts the "Domus Ars" Cultural center.

References

Bibliography

* Vincenzo Regina, ''Le chiese di Napoli. Viaggio indimenticabile attraverso la storia artistica, architettonica, letteraria, civile e spirituale della Napoli sacra'', Newton e Compton editore, Napoli 2004. Former churches in Naples Baroque architecture in Naples 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy {{italy-church-stub