Sant'Angelo a Segno, Naples Sant’Angelo a Segno or Sant’Archangelo a Segno is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

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 ...

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 ...

, located on Via dei Tribunali number 45.

History

This church recalls the apparition of

St Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

, the church's patron, alongside the army of Giacomo di Marra and the bishop Sant'Agnello of Naples (also called Sant'Aniello Abate) during a 6th-century repulse of besieging

Lombards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 and ...

. The church was called ''a Segno'' (a sign) because it putatively had a nail driven into the marble as a testament that here was the limit of Lombard penetration into Naples. Other sources anachronistically invoke battles against the

Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century Germany in the Middle Ages, German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings, to refer ...

. A plaque at the front door still commemorates the victory of in Neapolitan forces over the Lombards. A church at the site likely dates to the 7th century, although the present structure dates to a reconstruction in 1825 by Luigi Malesi. The artworks once inside the church are now in the

Museo di Capodimonte Museo di Capodimonte is an art museum located in the Palace of Capodimonte, a grand Bourbon palazzo in Naples, Italy. The museum is the prime repository of Neapolitan painting and decorative art, with several important works from other Italia ...

: including a ''Circumcision of Christ'' (1622) by

Simon Vouet Simon Vouet (; 9 January 1590 – 30 June 1649) was a French painter who studied and rose to prominence in Italy before being summoned by Louis XIII to serve as Premier peintre du Roi in France. He and his studio of artists created religious and m ...

, ''St Thomas of Canterbury'', a work by a member of the school of

Giovanni Balducci Giovanni Balducci, called Il Cosci after his maternal uncle, (c. 1560 — after 1630) was an Italian mannerist painter. Biography Born in Florence, Balducci was trained by Giovanni Battista Naldini. Under the guidance and supervision of Vasar ...

, ''Santa Rosa'', by Simonelli, a member of the school of

Luca Giordano Luca Giordano (18 October 1634 – 3 January 1705) was an Italian late-Baroque painter and printmaker in etching. Fluent and decorative, he worked successfully in Naples and Rome, Florence, and Venice, before spending a decade in Spain. Ear ...

, and the main altarpiece of ''St Michael Archangel'' by Francesco Pagano. The church is closed for worship.Il Portale del Sud
website, entry by Ciro La Rosa.

References

Former churches in Naples 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy {{Italy-RC-church-stub

History

See also

References