San Raffaele (also known as San Raffaele a Materdei or properly, Santi Raffaele e Margherita da Cortona) is a church on Via Amato di Montecassino, in the quartiere of Materdei 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. The church was founded in 1759 built on designs of

Giuseppe Astarita Giuseppe Astarita (Naples, 1707 – Naples, 1775) was an Italian architect and engineer of the late- Baroque or Rococo period. He was a pupil of Domenico Antonio Vaccaro and collaborated with Ferdinando Sanfelice; his style is influenced by ...

, adjacent to a hospice for women called a Ritiro delle Pentite, or hospice for prostitutes. The interior has a Greek cross layout. The interior has a highly decorated polychrome altar surmounted by a ''baldacchino'' of gilded wood with angels and a crown. The frescoes were completed by Angelo Mozzillo. San Raffaele ( St Raphael), the patron of fishermen, and often represented in paintings with fish. The saint of this church was often revered by infertile couples.

Bibliography

*Antonio Terraciano, Andrea Russo, ''Le chiese di Napoli. Censimento e brevi recensioni delle 448 chiese storiche della città di Napoli'', Lorenzo Giunta Editore, 1999. {{DEFAULTSORT:Raffaele Naples Raffaele, San 18th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Baroque architecture in Naples Magdalene asylums