San Giovanni a Carbonara is a

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

church 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 ...

, Southern Italy. It is located at the northern end of via Carbonara, just outside what used to be the eastern wall of the old city. The name ''carbonara'' (meaning "coal-carrier") was given to this site allocated for the collection and burning of refuse outside the city walls in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

History

The monastery/church complex of San Giovanni was founded by the Augustinians in 1343. The church was begun in Gotico Angioiano style, but completed in the early 15th century under King Ladislaus of Durazzo, who turned the church into a

Pantheon Pantheon may refer to: * Pantheon (religion), a set of gods belonging to a particular religion or tradition, and a temple or sacred building Arts and entertainment Comics *Pantheon (Marvel Comics), a fictional organization * ''Pantheon'' (Lone S ...

-like tribute to the last of the

Angevin Angevin or House of Anjou may refer to: *County of Anjou or Duchy of Anjou, a historical county, and later Duchy, in France **Angevin (language), the traditional langue d'oïl spoken in Anjou **Counts and Dukes of Anjou * House of Ingelger, a Frank ...

rulers of Naples. To the left of the entrance, almost at Via Carbonara is the church of the Pietatella.

Architecture and decoration

The current façade, with its scenographic stairwell entrance was constructed in 1707 or 1708 by

Ferdinando Sanfelice Ferdinando Sanfelice (1675 – 1 April 1748) was an Italian late Baroque architect and painter. Sanfelice was born in Naples and died there. He was one of the principal architects in Naples in the first half of the 18th century. He was a stude ...

. It maintains the Gothic portal with a lunette frescoed by the Lombard Leonardo da Besozzo. The interior is on the Latin Cross plan, with a rectangular nave. The main altar decorated with polychrome marble dates from 1746. The apse contains Ladislaus' tomb, commissioned by his sister Queen Joan II from the sculptor

Andrea Ciccione Andrea Ciccione (1388–1455), also known as Andrea di Onofrio, Nofri, and da Firenze, was an Italian architect and sculptor of the Renaissance. He was born and died in Florence, but spent much of his career in Naples. He trained under Masuccio ...

. The sepulchre of

Sergianni Caracciolo Giovanni Caracciolo, often called Sergianni (c. 1372 – 19 August 1432), was an Italian nobleman of the Kingdom of Naples, prime minister and favorite of queen Joan II of Naples. Due to his relationship with queen Joan (starting around 1416), ...

was also completed by Ciccione. Among the main chapels are the following: * ''Miroballo Chapel'' (Cappella Miroballo) - Dedicated to St John the Baptist, and decorated by Lombard artists including Malvito and Jacopo della Pila. Here, the tomb of Antonio Miroballo was completed by

Lorenzo Vaccaro Lorenzo Vaccaro (1655 – 10 August 1706) was an Italian late- Baroque sculptor. He worked in a formalized restrained style. He was born in Naples, the son of a lawyer. He apprenticed with Cosimo Fanzago Cosimo Fanzago (Clusone, 12 October 1591 ...

and was completed before the 15th-century frescoes of San Nicola da Tolentino. * ''Caracciolo del Sole Chapel'' (Cappella Caracciolo del Sole) - Near the apse, entered by passing under the funereal monument to King Ladislao. This Renaissance style chapel has frescoes by Perinetto and Leonardo da Besozzo, and the tomb of Sergianni Caracciolo. * ''Caracciolo di Vico Chapel'' (Cappella Caracciolo di Vico) - This chapel was also completed by Renaissance painters, and included work by sculptors such as

Giovanni da Nola Giovanni da Nola (1478–1559), also known as Giovanni Merliano, was an Italian sculptor and architect of the Renaissance, active in Naples. He was born the son of a leather merchant, in Nola near Naples. Da Nola moved to Naples where he trained ...

, Girolamo Santacroce, Giovanni Domenico D'Auria, Annibale Caccavello, and Girolamo D'Auria. * ''Somma Chapel''(Cappella Somma) - To the left of the entrance, this chapel was erected in 1557-1566 by D'Auria and Caccavello. * ''Seripando Chapel'' (Capella del Corcifisso) - the latter houses a ''Crucifixion'' by

Giorgio Vasari Giorgio Vasari (, also , ; 30 July 1511 – 27 June 1574) was an Italian Renaissance Master, who worked as a painter, architect, engineer, writer, and historian, who is best known for his work '' The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculp ...

. The church also contains a statue of the ''Madonna delle Grazie'' (1578) by Michelangelo Naccherino, and a sacristy whose decorative plan was formulated by

, with the help of

Cristofano Gherardi Cristofano or Cristoforo Gherardi, also known as il Doceno, (November 25, 1508 – April 1556) was an Italian painter of the late-Renaissance or Mannerist period, active mainly in Florence and Tuscany. Biography He was born in Borgo San Sepolc ...

. The church was restored in 1856, but was severely damaged by Allied bombardments in 1943.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:San Giovanni a Carbonara Giovanni a Carbonara Giovanni a Carbonara Giovanni a Carbonara Gothic architecture in Naples 1410 establishments in Europe 15th-century establishments in Italy Religious organizations established in the 15th century Augustinian churches in Italy Burial sites of the Capetian House of Anjou