Grazie Napoli

Lore & Background

During the second half of the 18th century, this church served as a secret meeting place for members of Free Masonry, supposedly sponsored by the monk Serafino Pinzone. Pinzone was accused of revolutionary Jacobin leanings in 1794. The church was suppressed in 1809, and in 1933 it was joined to the Hospital of Incurables under the original order of the monastery. By the 1970s, the church was in poor state of conservation. The interior is laid out as a Latin cross with chapels, and houses paintings by Domenico Antonio Vaccaro, Girolamo D'Auria, and a Madonna statue and a Deposition bas-relief by Giovanni da Nola. Among the masterworks is the Renaissance burial monument of Giovanniello de Cuntco and his wife, Lucrezia Filangieri di Candida (1517), sculpted by Giovanni Tommaso Malvito. Giovanello, secretary to the King of Aragon, reclines above in three dimensions, while his wife sleeps below in an elegant but simple bas-relief.

In Their Own Story

The presbytery and apse are decorated with frescoes by Giovanni Battista Beinaschi and Lorenzo Vaccaro. The right arm of the transept has a Sant'Antonio di Padova by Andrea da Salerno. In the 6th chapel on left, in relief the Incredulity of St Thomas by Girolamo Santacroce. The first chapel has both the Deposition bas-relief by Giovanni da Nola and a Burial of Galeazzo Giustiniani by an unknown 16th-century artist. Work on the church and adjacent monastery began in 1447, inspired by the beatified Pietro da Pisa. The church was completed in 1473, but from 1516 to 1535 it underwent reconstruction, including the portal by Giovanni Francesco di Palma. Further reconstruction occurred in the 18th century.

Reader's Guide

To visit Santa Maria delle Grazie Maggiore a Caponapoli, go to the historic center of Naples, Italy. The church was completed in 1473, with a portal added by Giovanni Francesco di Palma during reconstruction from 1516 to 1535. Inside, the Latin cross layout houses paintings by Domenico Antonio Vaccaro and Girolamo D'Auria, a Madonna statue and Deposition bas-relief by Giovanni da Nola, and the Renaissance burial monument of Giovanniello de Cuntco and Lucrezia Filangieri di Candida (1517) by Giovanni Tommaso Malvito. The presbytery and apse have frescoes by Giovanni Battista Beinaschi and Lorenzo Vaccaro. The right arm of the transept features Sant'Antonio di Padova by Andrea da Salerno. In the 6th chapel on left, see the Incredulity of St Thomas by Girolamo Santacroce. The first chapel holds both the Deposition bas-relief by Giovanni da Nola and a Burial of Galeazzo Giustiniani by an unknown 16th-century artist. The church was suppressed in 1809, joined to the Hospital of Incurables in 1933, and by the 1970s was in poor state of conservation.

Did You Know?

• Work on the church and adjacent monastery began in 1447, inspired by the beatified Pietro da Pisa.
• The church was completed in 1473, but underwent reconstruction from 1516 to 1535, including a portal by Giovanni Francesco di Palma.
• During the second half of the 18th century, it was a secret meeting place for Free Masonry, supposedly sponsored by the monk Serafino Pinzone, who was accused of revolutionary Jacobin leanings in 1794.
• The church was suppressed in 1809, and in 1933 joined to the Hospital of Incurables under the original order of the monastery.
• The Renaissance burial monument of Giovanniello de Cuntco and his wife Lucrezia Filangieri di Candida (1517) was sculpted by Giovanni Tommaso Malvito.