Sant'Eligio dei Chiavettieri (once known as ''Santa Maria ad Ercole'') is a
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
church in
Naples
Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
,
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, located at the intersection of via Cesare Sersale and vicoletto Chiavettieri al Pendino.
History
The church arose during the
Swabian rule of Naples. The origin of the tag of ''Hercules'' is uncertain. Some suggests that the site once held a temple of
Hercules
Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures.
The Romans adapted the Gr ...
while others claim a d'Ercole family of this street patronized the founding of the church. In the 15th century, the church was ceded to the guild of swordsmen (spadari) and then the confraternity of the locksmiths (chiavettieri o fabbricanti di chiavi), who rededicated the church to
Sant'Eligio. In 1624, it became the home of the Congregation of ''Salvatore e di Santa Maria Materdei'', who redecorated it in
baroque
The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
style. The facade has a 19th-century statue of the Redeemer. It once held an altarpiece attributed to Pietro and
Polito del Donzello.
Descrizione della città di Napoli e delle sue vicinanze
Volume 2 By Achille de Lauzières, 1855, page 1041.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eligio dei Chiavettieri
Churches in Naples