Santi Severino e Sossio, Naples
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The church of Santi Severino e Sossio and the annexed monastery are located on via Bartolommeo Capasso 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 is attached to one of the oldest monasteries in the city, and from 1835 it has housed the
State Archives of Naples The State Archives of Naples ( it, ), with its more than 50,000 linear meters of book and document shelving,Maria Antonietta Macciocchi, ''Cara Eleonora: passione e morte della Fonseca Pimentel nella rivoluzione napoletana'', Rizzoli, 1993, p. ...
. It was founded in the tenth century by the
Benedictine Order , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...
, but the Saracen raids of the time forced them to abandon the old monastery, located on the hill of Pizzofalcone, taking the relics of San Severino with them. In 904 they added to these the relics of San Sossio, martyred companion of
San Gennaro Januarius ( ; la, Ianuarius; Neapolitan and it, Gennaro), also known as , was Bishop of Benevento and is a martyr and saint of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. While no contemporary sources on his life are preserved, lat ...
. They remained here till 1808, when they were taken to Frattamaggiore. During the Angevin reign a number of important events occurred in this monastery, such as the convening of parliament in 1394 by the Sanseverino family, who were supporters of
Louis II of Anjou Louis II (5 October 1377 – 29 April 1417) was Duke of Anjou and Count of Provence from 1384 to 1417; he claimed the Kingdom of Naples, but only ruled parts of the kingdom from 1390 to 1399. His father, Louis I of Anjouthe founder of the House of ...
. In 1490, the architect Giovanni Francesco Mormando from
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laid the foundations of the present church, which was completed by the 16th century by Giovanni Francesco di Palma. The cupola built in 1561 was one of the first in Naples, designed by the Florentine architect
Sigismondo di Giovanni Sigismondo di Giovanni (died 1540) was an Italian architect in Naples, Italy, working in the Renaissance style. It was him who designed the nobile ''Seggio di Nido'' (1507) and the cupola for the church of San Severino e Sossio. He was a pupil o ...
. The frescoes of the cupola (1566), now lost, were originally painted by a Flemish painter by the name of Pablo or
Paolo Schepers Paolo is both a given name and a surname, the Italian form of the name Paul. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name Paolo Art *Paolo Alboni (1671–1734), Italian painter *Paolo Abbate (1884–1973), Italian-American ...
. Other painters active in the church comprised a polyglot series of artists, including
Marco Pino Marco Pino or Marco da Siena (1521–1583) was an Italian painter of the Renaissance and Mannerist period. Born in Costalpino and first trained in Siena, he later worked in Rome and in Naples, where he died. He was putatively a pupil of the pain ...
of
Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...
, Benvenuto Tortelli of
Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...
,
Bartolomeo Chiarini Bartolomeo or Bartolommeo is a masculine Italian given name, the Italian equivalent of Bartholomew. Its diminutive form is Baccio. Notable people with the name include: * Abramo Bartolommeo Massalongo (1824–1860), Italian paleobotanist and lic ...
of
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
,
Cosimo Fanzago Cosimo Fanzago (Clusone, 12 October 1591 – Napoli, 13 February 1678) was an Italian architect and sculptor, generally considered the greatest such artist of the Baroque period in Naples, Italy. Facade Santa Maria della Sapienza. Biography Fanz ...
of
Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...
, and lastly
Fabrizio di Guido Fabrizio is an Italian first name, from the Latin word "Faber" meaning "smith" and may refer to: * Fabrizio Barbazza (born 1963), Italian Formula One driver * Fabrizio Barca (born 1954), Italian politician * Fabrizio Brienza (born 1969), Italian mo ...
from
Carrara Carrara ( , ; , ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, in central Italy, of the province of Massa and Carrara, and notable for the white or blue-grey marble quarried there. It is on the Carrione River, some Boxing the compass, west-northwest o ...
. The last painter was active in the Medici chapel. . There is a long tradition of Tuscan artists residing in Naples, and was stimulated by the arrival of a group of master artisans from Carrara in the late 1500s, after the marriage of Alberico Cybo Malaspina and the Neapolitan Isabella of Capua, from the Duchy of Termoli. But there had already been a large contingent of Tuscan traders and financiers in Naples. For example, Antonio Piccolomini used the Strozzi family to negotiate having
Antonio Rossellino Antonio Gamberelli (1427–1479), Janson, H.W. (1995) ''History of Art''. 5th edn. Revised and expanded by Anthony F. Janson. London: Thames & Hudson, p. 465. nicknamed Antonio Rossellino for the colour of his hair, was an Italian Renaissance ...
and
Benedetto da Maiano Benedetto da Maiano (1442 – May 24, 1497) was an Italian Early Renaissance sculptor. Biography Born in the village of Maiano (now part of Fiesole), he started his career as companion of his brother, the architect Giuliano da Maiano. When he ...
participate in the decoration of the Piccolomini Chapel in the church of
Sant'Anna dei Lombardi Sant'Anna dei Lombardi, ( it, St. Anne of the Lombards), and also known as Santa Maria di Monte Oliveto, is an ancient church and convent located in ''piazza Monteoliveto'' in central Naples, Italy. Across Monteoliveto street from the Fountain in ...
. In addition,
Tino di Camaino 300px, Tomb of Antonio d'Orso, in Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence.">Florence.html" ;"title="Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence">Santa Maria del Fiore, Florence. Tino di Camaino (c. 1280 – c. 1337) was an Italian sculptor. Born in Siena, the s ...
and
Giotto Giotto di Bondone (; – January 8, 1337), known mononymously as Giotto ( , ) and Latinised as Giottus, was an Italian painter and architect from Florence during the Late Middle Ages. He worked during the Gothic/Proto-Renaissance period. Giot ...
apparently visited Naples under Angevin patronage. The decor of the chapels of Santi Severino e Sossio follows a pattern common to late Renaissance Neapolitan chapels: a reclining figure embedded within an architectural arched entablature, and the large altarpiece framed like a tabernacle, with lateral walls also holding paintings, and the lunettes painted in fresco. The wooden choir (1573) was designed by Benvenuto Tortelli da Brescia, and became a model for others in Southern Italy. In fact, monks from the Benedictine convent of San Martino delle Scale in Palermo requested a choir that "conformed" to that of San Severino. It also influenced other choir stalls and woodwork, including
San Paolo Maggiore San Paolo Maggiore is a basilica church in Naples, southern Italy, and the burial place of Gaetano Thiene, known as Saint Cajetan, founder of the Order of Clerics Regular (or Theatines). It is located on Piazza Gaetano, about 1-2 blocks north of ...
completed in 1583 by Giovan Lorenzo d'Albano (destroyed in last war), work in the sacristy of
Santa Caterina a Formiello Santa Caterina a Formiello is a church in Naples, in southern Italy, located at the extreme eastern end of the old historic center of the city, on Via Carbonara and Piazza Enrico de Nicola, near the gate called Porta Capuana. The term ''Formiello' ...
and S. Maria delle Grazie a Caponapoli (works by Martino Migliore), and finally the choirs in the church of Santi Apostoli,
Santa Maria la Nova Santa Maria la Nova is a Renaissance architecture, Renaissance style, now-deconsecrated, Roman Catholic church and monastery in central Naples. The church is located at the beginning of a side street directly across from the east side of the ma ...
, and the
Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...
(1616) by Marcantonio Ferraro. Construction continued in the 18th century by
Giovanni del Gaizo Giovanni may refer to: * Giovanni (name), an Italian male given name and surname * Giovanni (meteorology), a Web interface for users to analyze NASA's gridded data * ''Don Giovanni'', a 1787 opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, based on the legend of ...
, who finished the facade using a design by Giovan Battista Nauclerio. When the Benedictines were expelled in 1799, the convent was occupied by the order of
Sanfedisti Sanfedismo (from ''Santa Fede'', "Holy Faith" in Italian) was a popular anti- Jacobin movement, organized by Cardinal Fabrizio Ruffo, which mobilized peasants of the Kingdom of Naples against the Pro-French Parthenopaean Republic in 1799, its ai ...
and in 1813, became the collegio di Marina. In 1835 it became the archive of the state, which is still its present function. In the apse of the church main altar and the balustrade of presbytery (1640) were made and designed by
Cosimo Fanzago Cosimo Fanzago (Clusone, 12 October 1591 – Napoli, 13 February 1678) was an Italian architect and sculptor, generally considered the greatest such artist of the Baroque period in Naples, Italy. Facade Santa Maria della Sapienza. Biography Fanz ...
. In 1783 the main altar was remodeled by Giacomo Mazzotti, the floor dates to 1697. The church has a Latin cross plan with seven chapels on each side and a deep rectangular apse. The nave frescoes and canvases were painted by
Francesco de Mura Francesco de Mura (21 April 1696 – 19 August 1782) was an Italian painter of the late- Baroque period, active mainly in Naples and Turin. His late work reflects the style of neoclassicism. Life Francesco de Mura, also referred to as ''Fran ...
, while the lateral chapels include works of the painter
Marco Pino Marco Pino or Marco da Siena (1521–1583) was an Italian painter of the Renaissance and Mannerist period. Born in Costalpino and first trained in Siena, he later worked in Rome and in Naples, where he died. He was putatively a pupil of the pain ...
and the neapolitan sculptor
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 ...
. Of note, is the funerary monument of Camillo de' Medici, completed by
Girolamo D'Auria Girolamo D'Auria (1577–1620) was an Italian sculptor, active mainly in Naples, Italy. His first name is variously used as Hieronymus, Ieronimo, Hieronimo, Jeronimo, Geronimo or Gerolamo. Girolamo's father, Giovanni Domenico D'Auria, and An ...
at the end of the 16th century. Through the sacristy one can access the lower church, built and decorated in
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
style, completed by Mormando.


The chapels


Right Nave

Most of the chapels on the right side were completed by the mid- to late 16th century, but their ownership passed through various hands. The first chapel, belonging in 1550 to the cavalier Annibale Mastrogiudice, became property of the Genoese Cristofaro Grimaldi in 1576. The second chapel was bought in 1545 by Giancarlo Casanova, then passed to Prospero Tuttavilla in 1591. The third chapel, initially owned by 1541 by Marino Mastrogiudice (aristocrat and lawyer from
Sorrento Sorrento (, ; nap, Surriento ; la, Surrentum) is a town overlooking the Bay of Naples in Southern Italy. A popular tourist destination, Sorrento is located on the Sorrentine Peninsula at the south-eastern terminus of the Circumvesuviana rail ...
and president of a Royal Advisory panel, the ''Regia Camera della Sommaria''. From Mastrogiudice it passed to the Saliceti Family in 1551, and then to Fabio Giordano by 1568; The fourth chapel in 1559 belonged to Giannandrea and by 1561 to Ottaviano de Curtis. The fifth chapel was assigned to the jurist Teano Gianfelice Scalaleone and by 1598 to the Genoese jurist consult Francesco Massa The sixth chapel was assigned to Francesco Albertini, juristconsult of
Nola Nola is a town and a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, southern Italy. It lies on the plain between Mount Vesuvius and the Apennines. It is traditionally credited as the diocese that introduced bells to Christian worship. ...
in 1549; Below the church is the tomb of Giovan Battista Cicaro (c. 1507–1512), with an epitath written by
Jacopo Sannazaro Jacopo Sannazaro (; 28 July 1458 – 6 August 1530) was an Italian poet, humanist and epigrammist from Naples. He wrote easily in Latin, in Italian and in Neapolitan, but is best remembered for his humanist classic '' Arcadia'', a masterwork ...
: . Construction of the tomb monument itself has been attributed once to either
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 ...
or a Spanish sculptor by the name of Pietro della Plata, but later scholarship seems to attribute them to Andrea Ferrucci da Fiesole and Bartolomé Ordóñez.


Left Nave

The Chapel of Medici di Gragnano, which holds the tomb of ''Camillo de' Medici'' (1596), was decorated in a sumptuous Tuscan style, the first of its kind in Naples, using polychrome inlay not only in pavement but also in walls. The chapel and monument are works by
Girolamo D'Auria Girolamo D'Auria (1577–1620) was an Italian sculptor, active mainly in Naples, Italy. His first name is variously used as Hieronymus, Ieronimo, Hieronimo, Jeronimo, Geronimo or Gerolamo. Girolamo's father, Giovanni Domenico D'Auria, and An ...
and
Fabrizio di Guido Fabrizio is an Italian first name, from the Latin word "Faber" meaning "smith" and may refer to: * Fabrizio Barbazza (born 1963), Italian Formula One driver * Fabrizio Barca (born 1954), Italian politician * Fabrizio Brienza (born 1969), Italian mo ...
. This chapel is off the left nave.


The Apse chapels

The
Sanseverino * Sanseverino (family): The Sanseverino are one of the historical families most famous in the Kingdom of Naples and all of Italy, having 300 strongholds, 40 counties, nine marquisates, twelve duchies and ten principalities primarily distributed in ...
chapel and the chapel of Girolamo Gesualdo, flank the main altar. They were decorated in the mid-1500s, before the completion of the church in 1567. The Sanseverino Chapel, dedicated to the body of Christ, was conceived by Ippolita de Monti, wife of Ugo and Countess of
Saponara Saponara ( Sicilian: ''Sapunara'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about east of Palermo and about west of Messina. Saponara borders the following municipalities: Messina, ...
, as a pantheon of the family. Over the years, in addition to house the tomb of the founder and also three of her young children (who had been murdered). The chapel was enriched with shields, medallions and inscriptions, commemorating members of the family: the warrior Alessandro de Monti, (died June 22, 1622); Julia de Monti, placed in the tomb (1715) by son Geronimo de Monti-Sanfelice, Duke of Lauriano, who lived in the first half of the 18th century; Salvatore Capua-Sanseverino, Prince of Riccia and Marquis of Raia, who died in 1858. With its classic architecture the arches of the chapel imitates lateral chapels of the church of
Sant'Anna dei Lombardi Sant'Anna dei Lombardi, ( it, St. Anne of the Lombards), and also known as Santa Maria di Monte Oliveto, is an ancient church and convent located in ''piazza Monteoliveto'' in central Naples, Italy. Across Monteoliveto street from the Fountain in ...
, where just two years later Florentine artists introduce in the Tuscan taste for sumptuous decoration in fresco and stucco motifs. On the 16th century pavement, many tombs are found, including that of
Belisario Corenzio Belisario Corenzio ( el, Βελισσάριος Κορένσιος 1558–1646) was a Greek-Italian painter, active in Venice and Naples. He is one of few Greek painters that did not belong to the Cretan Renaissance like his contemporaries of the ...
, who died in a fall from the scaffolding while he frescoed the vault of this church. After much of the ceilings collapse in the 1731 earthquake, they were refrescoed by
Francesco De Mura Francesco de Mura (21 April 1696 – 19 August 1782) was an Italian painter of the late- Baroque period, active mainly in Naples and Turin. His late work reflects the style of neoclassicism. Life Francesco de Mura, also referred to as ''Fran ...
, who also painted the counterfacade (1739) and Giovanni Paolo Melchiorri, who painted the choir ceiling with a ''Glory of St Benedict''.Stanislao D'Aloe, in ''Napoli e i luoghi celebri delle sue vicinanze'', Vol. I, Naples, 1845, Publisher G. Nobile, p. 235
/ref> The stucco of the nave was completed by
Giuseppe Scarola Giuseppe is the Italian form of the given name Joseph, from Latin Iōsēphus from Ancient Greek Ἰωσήφ (Iōsḗph), from Hebrew יוסף. It is the most common name in Italy and is unique (97%) to it. The feminine form of the name is Giuse ...
. The Sacristy conserves a complete cycle of frescoes by
Onofrio De Lione Onofrio is an Italian surname derived from Onuphrius. Notable people with the surname include: *Vincent D'Onofrio Vincent Philip D'Onofrio (; born June 30, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his supporting and leading ro ...
, brother of
Andrea Andrea is a given name which is common worldwide for both males and females, cognate to Andreas, Andrej and Andrew. Origin of the name The name derives from the Greek word ἀνήρ (''anēr''), genitive ἀνδρός (''andrós''), that ref ...
and student of Corenzio. Onofrio painted the ''Old Testament Scenes'' (1651). The ''Trinity'' fresco was painted by Corenzio The church has three cloisters: * The first, called the ''Chiostro del Platano'', was so called due to a plantain tree which legend holds was planted by
St. Benedict Benedict of Nursia ( la, Benedictus Nursiae; it, Benedetto da Norcia; 2 March AD 480 – 21 March AD 548) was an Christianity in Italy, Italian Christian monk, writer, and theologian who is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Ortho ...
and whose leaves had healing powers. The plant was demolished in 1959, when the trunk measured 8.45 m in circumference. In the portico, originally stood upright columns, then replace of pilaters, and frescoed by
Solario Solario (1922–1945) was a successful United Kingdom, British Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse and influential Horse breeding#Terminology, sire. Background Bred in Ireland by the Windham Wyndham-Quin, 4th Earl of Dunraven and Mount-Earl, ...
, with scenes of the life of
St. Benedict Benedict of Nursia ( la, Benedictus Nursiae; it, Benedetto da Norcia; 2 March AD 480 – 21 March AD 548) was an Christianity in Italy, Italian Christian monk, writer, and theologian who is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Ortho ...
; * The second, called the ''Chiostro del Noviziato'' was built in the 15th century, in a rectangular plan, supported by thirty arches resting on pillars Piperno rock. In 1803, the upper floor was converted into a two-story building, designed in part to the accommodate a school. At the center stands a bust of Bartolommeo Capasso; * The third, called the Marble Cloister (''Chiostro di Marmo''), was built between the 1500s. The arches of the cloister are supported by columns in white
Carrara marble Carrara marble, Luna marble to the Romans, is a type of white or blue-grey marble popular for use in sculpture and building decor. It has been quarried since Roman times in the mountains just outside the city of Carrara in the province of Massa ...
.


References


Bibliography

*Pietro de Stefano
''Descrittione dei luoghi sacri della città di Napoli''
Publisher Raymondo Amato, Naples, 1560, pp. 88–89, *Cesare D'Engenio Caracciolo
''Napoli sacra''
Naples, per Ottavio Beltrano, 1623, p. 316-334. *Carlo de Lellis
''Parte second o' vero Supplimento a Napoli sacra di Don Cesare D'Engenio Caracciolo''
Naples per Roberto Mollo, 1654, p. 163. * Benedetto Laudati, ''Breve chronicon regalis neapolitani monasterii Sancti Severini et Sossi'', in Mariano Armellini, ''Bibliotheca benedectino-casinensis, sive scriptorum casinensis congregationis alias Sancta Justina patavina qui in ea ad hac usque tempora floruerunt operum ac gestorum notitia'', Assisi, 1731–1732; * Giuseppe Sigismondo
''Descrizione della città di Napoli e suoi borghi del dottor Giuseppe Sigismondo napoletano''
2nd Volume, Naples, publisher Terres brothers, 1788, pp. 68–82. * Luigi d'Afflitto
''Guida per i curiosi e per i viaggiatori which vengono alla città di Napoli''
Naples, Tipografia Chianese, 1834, pp. 218. * Giovanni Battista Ajello, ''Napoli e i luoghi celebri delle sue vicinanze'', Napoli, Stab. Tip. di G. Nobile, 1845, p. 233-242, accessibile s
google libri
*Scipione Volpicella, ''Principali edificii della città di Napoli'', Napoli 1847, p. 575-604, accessibile i
google libri
* Germanico Patrelli, ''Memorie dei lavori di riparazione eseguiti in the church dei Padri cassinesi dei Santi Severino e Sossio di Napoli, progettati e diretti dal maggiore cavaliere Germanico Patrelli'', Napoli, 1852; * Giovanni Battista Chiarini, in Carlo Celano, ''Notizie del bello dell'antico e del curioso della città di Napoli'' (1856–1860), a cura di Paolo Macry, vol. III, Napoli, Edizioni dell'anticaglia, 2000, pp. 728–732, accessibile i
google libri
* Scipione Volpicella, ''La crociera of the church dei Santi Severino e Sossio di Napoli'', in ''Studi di letteratura, storia, e arti'', Napoli, 1856; * Gaetano Nobile
''Un mese a Napoli: descrizione della città di Napoli e delle sue vicinanze divisa in XXX giornate''
vol. II, Naples 1863, p. 473. * Gennaro Aspreno Galante
''Memorie dell'antico cenobio lucullano di San Severino abate in Napoli''
Naples, 1869. * Ferdinando Carafa, ''Notizie storiche intorno alla Chiesa dei santi Severino e Sossio, Napoli'', 1876; * Bartolomeo Capasso, ''Monumenta ad neapolitani ducatus pertinentia'', Naples, 1881; * Scipione Volpicella, ''Memorie patrie. The church dei Santi Severino e Sossio: pavimento della nave'', in “La Carità”, XXIX, novembre 1881, pp. 781–802; * Nunzio Federico Faraglia, ''Memorie artistiche of the church benedettina dei Santi Severino e Sossio'', in “Archivio Storico per le Province Napoletane”, III, 1887, pp. 235–252; * Giuseppe Molinaro, ''Santi Severino e Sossio'', Naples, 1930; * Egildo Gentile, ''I benedettini a Napoli'', in “Benedectina”, VII, 1-2, 1953, pp. 39–44; * Jole Mazzoleni, ''Il monastero benedettino dei Santi Severino e Sossio'', Naples, 1964; * Maria Raffaella Pessolano, ''Il monastero napoletano dei Santi Severino e Sossio'', Naples, 1977; * Jole Mazzoleni, ''L'Archivio del monastero benedettino dei Santi Severino e Sossio conservato presso l'Archivio di Stato di Napoli'', Naples, 1984.


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Severino Sossio Naples Roman Catholic churches in Naples 16th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Renaissance architecture in Naples