After completing the almost mandatory visit of the monumental complex of Santa Chiara, go back to "Spaccanapoli", which in this section has the name Via Benedetto Croce. At the corner with Via San Sebastiano, stop for a moment in front of the Church of Santa Marta. If you're lucky enough to find it open, go past the iron gate and take a look: you will see a number of beautiful and refined nativity scenes made by local artists that are just as amazing as those displayed in the famous and crowded Via San Gregorio Armeno that I will soon tell you about.
After this pleasant folkloristic-religious stop, continue straight along Via Benedetto Croce, admiring the noble palaces that show you all the splendor of the past centuries of Naples with their delightful gardens and courtyards and their frescoed and decorated halls. One of these stands out, Palazzo Filomarino at number 12, which is where the illustrious philosopher the street is dedicated to lived until the end of his days, and is now the headquarters of the cultural institute he founded. On the other side at number 19 you can see the gorgeous Palazzo Venezia, which is the ancient seat of the Republic of Venice's ambassadors in the Kingdom of Naples. It has recently been restored as a venue for cultural and artistic events, thanks also to its charming rooftop gardens and the interior courtyard with its original three-arch structure.
At number 23 you can see Palazzo Tufarelli, which was probably designed as part of Palazzo Venezia, and at number 45 you'll see Palazzo Carafa della Spina with its imposing eighteenth-century portal adorned with lion heads.
You're now about to reach Piazza San Domenico Maggiore, where Palazzo di Sangro di Casacalenda proudly displays its beautiful, Doric order façade.
You can admire the Baroque-style Obelisk of San Domenico in the middle of the square, which was erected as an ex-voti after the plague of 1656. It actually took almost a century for the statue of the saint to be placed on top and complete the obelisk's sculptural decoration!
On the left side of the square, let me lastly tell you about Palazzo Petrucci, or rather its entrance door, which is the only original 15th-century part of the building that's been left untouched.
FUN FACT: in Piazza San Domenico you can also admire the eighteenth-century Palazzo Corigliano, which is the home of the Faculty of Oriental Studies of the University of Naples. You may already be beyond your college years, but all the same go inside with the crowd of students coming and going to see some delightful and well-preserved Rococo interiors.
Language: English