Naples: San Domenico Maggiore

Voorzijde van de kerk.

The immense church of San Domenico Maggiore can be counted among the most interesting religious buildings in Naples. What is special about the church is that it basically has its main entrance at the back. Most visitors enter the building by taking the stairs on the lively Piazza San Domenico Maggiore. The formal entrance of the church is, however, on the other side. To the right of the San Domenico there is a narrow alley, which in its turn grants access to a courtyard. If we enter this courtyard, we see the real façade of the church. The San Domenico Maggiore has a long history, which begins at the end of the thirteenth century. The Gothic church from that era has been thoroughly remodelled and transformed over the course of the centuries. For me the most important reason to visit the San Domenico was an early fourteenth-century fresco cycle by the Roman painter Pietro Cavallini (ca. 1259-1330). The cycle is not only of exceptional quality, its state of preservation is excellent as well.

History

Cell of Thomas Aquinas.

In the year 1231, ten years after the death of their founder Dominicus de Guzmán (1170-1221), the first Dominicans arrived in Naples. They were granted the small church of San Michele Arcangelo a Morfisa, which had previously been used by Benedictines. In 1255 the church was dedicated to Saint Dominicus, who had been canonised in 1234. The Dominicans did very well in Naples. In 1224 Frederick II of Hohenstaufen, Holy Roman emperor and King of Sicily, had founded a university in the city. Theological education at this university was in the hands of the Dominicans, who gave their lectures in the convent adjoining the church. The best-known Dominican professor was without a doubt Thomas Aquinas (ca. 1225-1274), author of the famous work Summa theologiae. If you study the complex from above, you will notice that three cloisters were built next to the church. Of these only the so-called Chiostro delle Statue – named after the four statues in the cloister garden – is still in use. The complex is nowadays inhabited by just a small number of Dominican friars.

At the end of the thirteenth century it became clear that the church of San Michele Arcangelo was much too small. The Hohenstaufen dynasty had by now become extinct and the kingdom of Sicily had been split. The King of Aragon (in Spain) controlled the island of Sicily, while Naples and Southern Italy were ruled by kings from the House of Anjou, a branch of the royal house of France. It was Charles II of Anjou, nicknamed “the Lame” (Lo Zoppo), who ordered a new church to be built for the Dominicans. The foundation stone of this Gothic church was laid on 6 January 1283. The next year Charles was taken prisoner in the war against King Peter III of Aragon. At the time he was only crown prince and regent of the kingdom of Naples: his father Charles I was formally still king. However, Charles I died in early 1285, after which his son became King of Naples in captivity. It was not until 1288 that Charles II was released. The next year he was formally granted the royal crown by the Pope, ruling the kingdom until his death in 1309. The San Domenico Maggiore was only completed in 1324, during the reign of Charles’ son Robert of Anjou, nicknamed “the Wise” (Il Saggio).

Interior of the church.

A remarkable feature of the church of San Domenico Maggiore is that the old church of San Michele Arcangelo has been incorporated into the new building. If you take the stairs from the large square behind the church, you enter the San Michele and can then continue your way to the right transept of the San Domenico. The stairs were, by the way, built by Alfonso V of Aragon, who was King of Sicily between 1416 and 1458 and also King of Naples between 1442 and 1458 (as Alfonso I). His reign marked the first time since the thirteenth century that the island of Sicily and Southern Italy were again ruled by the same monarch. The stairs are just one of many elements added to the San Domenico Maggiore over the course of time. The church for instance acquired its beautiful coffered Baroque ceiling in 1670, while Domenico Antonio Vaccaro (1678-1745) completed the splendid floor in 1732. Between 1850 and 1853 the interior of the church was restored by the architect Federico Travaglini (1814-1893). Like so many other churches in Naples the San Domenico Maggiore was heavily damaged by bombardments in 1943. Fortunately, thanks in large part to a thorough restoration in 1953, the church looks magnificent again today.

Exterior

The exterior of the San Domenico is pretty plain and simple. I will start my description at the front. Here two chapels were built against the façade at the beginning of the sixteenth century (first image in this post). The one on the left, the Cappella Muscettola or Cappella di San Giuseppe, has a little dome, but unfortunately we also see a lot of weed growing from the gutter that should really be removed. The chapel on the right side is the Cappella Carafa di Santa Severina, also known as the Cappella di San Martino. A portico was added between the two chapels in the eighteenth century. Behind it, a Gothic portal from the Middle Ages grants access to the church. The bell-tower on the far right also dates from the eighteenth century.

Rear of the church.

Piazza San Domenico Maggiore with the Obelisco di San Domenico.

The back of the church, i.e. the part adjoining the Piazza San Domenico Maggiore, is also functional rather than beautiful. We see very few decorations, only a crenelated apse and a couple of windows. On the left we see the aforementioned stairs of King Alfonso I, which during my visit to Naples were mostly used by people looking for a place in the shade (it was 36 degrees Celsius outside and the sun was high up in the sky). The stairs lead to a part of the church in which one might still recognise the contours of the old church of San Michele Arcangelo a Morfisa. The Gothic portal behind the stairs may very well have been added in King Alfonso’s days as well. The most important landmark of the Piazza San Domenico Maggiore is, by the way, the Obelisco di San Domenico, also known as the guglia (spire). It was designed in 1656 by the architect Cosimo Fanzago (1591-1678). Fanzago was originally from the town of Clusone in Lombardy, but worked in Naples for most of his life and was counted among the most important Baroque architects of his age there. The monument was completed as late as 1737 by the aforementioned Domenico Antonio Vaccaro. With the Obelisco di San Domenico, the Neapolitans wanted to express their gratitude to Saint Dominicus for ending a plague in the city.

Interior

Cosimo Fanzago was also active inside the church, where he was responsible for the high altar and balustrade, completed in 1652. To the left of the balustrade is a large Paschal candlestick. It is a composite work from the late sixteenth century. The base of the candlestick consists of statues of the Virtues that were made by the Tuscan sculptor Tino di Camaino (ca. 1285-1337). Tino was originally from Siena, worked in Pisa for many years, but was at some point summoned to Naples, where he left behind a lot of work. The statues of the Virtues are originally from the disassembled funerary monument of Philip of Anjou, prince of Taranto (ca. 1278-1332). He was a son of King Charles II and a brother of King Robert. High up on the wall of the left transept (and therefore easy to miss) we find another part of the monument.

Statues by Tino di Camaino.

The San Domenico has at least two dozen chapels, some more interesting than others. I obviously cannot discuss all of them and will therefore confine myself to some of the highlights. Let us start in the left aisle, where we find the Cappella di San Bartolomeo. The chapel was the property of the Carafa della Spina family since the fourteenth century. The current interior of the chapel is the result of a large restoration that took place in 1769, but the most beautiful object in the chapel is much, much older. I am referring to the tomb of Letizia Caracciolo against the left wall. The tomb dates from the second half of the fourteenth century. On the front side of the monument Saint John the Baptist, the Madonna and Child and Saint Catherine of Alexandria have been depicted. What is interesting is that the text on the tomb not only mentions Letizia Caracciolo’s year of death (1340), but also gives us the name of her husband Filippo Caracciolo, “named Carafa”. Carafa may therefore very well have been a nickname of a branch of the Caracciolo family.

Tomb of Letizia Caracciolo.

Cappellone del Crocifisso.

In the right aisle we find the large Cappellone del Crocifisso. This chapel itself has two smaller chapels on the left. Unfortunately the gates of the chapel were locked, so I could only admire the funerary monuments and the panel painting on the back wall through the bars. Initially I thought that was a pity, as the panel painting features in a very special story, in which the crucified Christ supposedly spoke to Thomas Aquinas. However, I later learned that the work in the Cappellone is a photographic reproduction, and that the original is in Thomas’ own cell in the convent. As will become clear in a moment, that cell is open to the public.

And now that Thomas Aquinas has been mentioned, the next chapel on the right side is the Cappella di San Tommaso d’Aquino. Two fourteenth-century funerary monuments immediately draw our attention here. The monument on the right is the tomb of Giovanna d’Aquino, who died in 1343. The monument is attributed to a follower of Tino di Camaino. Behind the effigy of the deceased we see a fresco of a Madonna and Child on a throne, made by a painter who is known as the Maestro della Cappella Loffredo. The work is mostly interesting because it clearly shows influences of innovative painters such as Giotto and Cavallini. The tomb on the other side of the chapel is that of Cristoforo and Tommaso d’Aquino, who died in 1342 and 1357 respectively. We do not know the name of the maker of the monument, but he was presumably a follower of the Florentine sculptors Giovanni and Pacio Bertini. This Tommaso d’Aquino is obviously not the famous theologian Thomas Aquinas. I do not even know whether the three deceased were in any way related to Thomas (Aquino is a town in Lazio, but in spite of his name Thomas Aquinas was actually born in nearby Roccasecca).

Tomb of Cristoforo and Tommaso d’Aquino (left) and of Giovanna d’Aquino (right).

Tomb of Giovanna d’Aquino, with a fresco by the Maestro della Cappella Loffredo.

Cappella di Santa Maria delle Grazie or Cappella Bonito, with an altarpiece by Angiolillo Arcuccio.

Of the chapels in the former church of San Michele Arcangelo a Morfisa I especially liked the Cappella di Santa Maria delle Grazie or Cappella Bonito. The altarpiece in the chapel was made around 1470 by the local painter Angiolillo Arcuccio (died ca. 1492). It represents a Madonna and Child, flanked by Saints John the Baptist and Anthony the Abbot. The latter can easily be identified by his two symbols: the Greek letter Tau on his cloak and the little fire at his feet. This is a reference to Saint Anthony’s fire, a disease nowadays known as ergotism, which is caused by a fungus called claviceps purpurea. Monks from the Order of Saint Anthony were famous for their ability to treat this ailment (see Pistoia: Cappella del Tau).

Cappella Brancaccio

By far the most beautiful chapel in the church is the Cappella Brancaccio, where we find the frescoes by Pietro Cavallini. We know that Cavallini arrived in Naples in 1308, as a document from that year from the archives of Charles II of Anjou mentions a payment to Magister Petrus Cavallinus de Roma pictor. At the end of the thirteenth century Cavallini had made a name for himself in Rome, with among other things his frescoes in the churches of San Paolo fuori le Mura and Santa Cecilia in Trastevere and his mosaic in the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere. It is therefore hardly surprising that he got commissions elsewhere in Italy too, and the assignment to embellish the Cappella Brancaccio with frescoes was granted to him by the Neapolitan cardinal Landolfo Brancaccio (died 1312). The frescoes were likely completed around 1309. Although parts have been lost and other parts show signs of damage, the frescoes are still in a remarkably decent state. There is a machine in the chapel to turn on the light, but during my visit the natural light in the Cappella Brancaccio was so good that I did not need any additional artificial light.

Saint John the Evangelist boiled in hot oil.

Starting on the left wall, we see three stories there from the life of Saint John the Evangelist. On the orders of the Roman emperor Domitianus (81-96) John is boiled alive in a cauldron full of hot oil (photo above). But lo and behold, John is not harmed by the oil at all. This botched execution is said to have taken place at the Porta Latina in Rome, and that is likely the structure we see behind the emperor (see Rome: San Giovanni a Porta Latina). The second fresco shows us the Assumption of Saint John by two angels, while the fresco at the bottom is an impressive Crucifixion (photos below). Although there is doubt whether the John who witnessed the Crucifixion and John the Evangelist were one and the same person, cardinal Brancaccio and Cavallini simply assumed they were. On the far left and right Cavallini painted two Dominican saints. Around 1309 the Dominicans did not have that many saints yet, so it should not be very difficult to identify them. The figure on the right is holding the palm branch of a martyr and must therefore be Saint Peter of Verona. This notorious inquisitor was murdered in 1252 by a heretic and was canonised less than a year later. The figure on the left must be none other than Dominicus de Guzmán himself.

Assumption of Saint John the Evangelist.

Crucifixion.

The frescoes on the back wall are in a slightly less satisfactory state. They tell stories from the lives of the brothers Peter and Andrew, fishermen from Bethsaida on Lake Galilee. We see their calling by Christ and the trial and death of Saint Andrew. Tradition dictates that Saint Andrew was crucified around the year 60 in Achaea in present-day Greece. In Cavallini’s fresco we see the apostle tied with ropes to a regular cross. Apparently the tradition that Saint Andrew was martyred on a so-called Saint Andrew’s cross, which is X-shaped, had not yet taken root in Cavallini’s time. The evil Roman magistrate who has condemned Saint Andrew to death meets a miserable end too. We see how he is molested by a winged little devil. A third fresco is about a posthumous miracle that Saint Andrew is said to have performed: the saint can be seen warning a bishop that the woman who is visiting him for supper is in effect a devil who wants to seduce him.

Crucifixion of Saint Andrew.

On the right wall Cavallini painted three stories from the life of Saint Mary Magdalene. The bottom fresco is almost entirely lost because several centuries later some genius thought it would be a good idea to erect a funerary monument against it. We do know what was depicted here: Supper in the House of the Pharisee. This story from Luke 7:36-50 is important, because it tells us how Jesus has an encounter with a sinful woman. She wets his feet with her tears, dries them with her hair, kisses them and rubs them with oil. Jesus then forgives her all her sins. In later centuries this sinful woman was often equated to Mary Magdalene, among others by Pope Saint Gregorius the Great (590-604). This equation does not make any sense, as Luke 8:2 explicitly mentions a Mary from Magdala “from whom seven demons had come out”. As with Saint John (see above), it seems unlikely that the cardinal and Cavallini were even remotely bothered by these kinds of theological discussions. For them the sinful woman from the Gospel of Luke was simply Mary Magdalene. The second fresco depicts the well-known Noli me tangere (“do not touch me”) incident, which occurred after the Resurrection of Christ. In the background the city of Jerusalem is visible and we also see how the funerary monument has taken a bite out of poor Mary Magdalene. In the top fresco Cavallini painted Mary Magdalene in a cave. Her long hair covers her naked body and an angel visits her for the Holy Communion.

Noli me tangere.

Mary Magdalene receives Holy Communion from an angel.

Sacristy, treasury and cell of Saint Thomas Aquinas

Ceiling fresco by Francesco Solimena.

Those who buy a ticket can visit various other parts of the complex of San Domenico with a guide. In my humble opinion the crypt of a branch of the Carafa family to the left of the choir is not that interesting, but the sacristy, treasury and cell of Thomas Aquinas are definitely worth a visit. The Baroque sacristy is a work by Giovanni Battista Nauclerio (1666-1739). If you look up, you will see a beautiful fresco from 1706-1709 by Francesco Solimena (1657-1747) that represents the triumph of faith over heresy. Part of the floor is the tombstone of the first bishop of New York, Richard Luke Concanen (1747-1810). The letters O.P. on the slab make clear that he was a member of the Order of Preachers, i.e. the Dominicans. Remarkably, Irish-born Concanen never set foot in New York. After his appointment as bishop in 1808 he tried several times to get to the United States from Italy, but the Napoleonic wars made such a long journey impossible. In the end the bishop died in 1810 in Naples.

No less than 42 coffins have been positioned along the balustrades of the sacristy. They contain the embalmed remains of members of the royal family of the House of Aragon and of members of the Neapolitan nobility. The coffins are the so-called Arche Aragonesi and those of the most famous persons are located right above the entrance. However, the coffin of King Alfonso I, who died in 1458, is empty. His remains were moved to Spain in 1666. The next coffin is that of Alfonso’s illegitimate son and successor Ferdinand I, also known as Ferrante. Ferrante ruled as King of Naples between 1458 and 1494. He was remembered as a protector of the arts and a talented general. The king also had the bodies of executed enemies embalmed and put on display in a mummy museum in his palace. This makes it a bit ironic that Ferrante himself now lies in state in a museum (although we obviously do not see the body). The third coffin is that of Ferrante’s grandson Ferrante II, King of Naples between 1495 and 1496. He was married to Joanna IV of Naples (1478-1518), a daughter of Ferrante and therefore his very own aunt. Her coffin can be found above the entrance as well.

Sacristy with the Arche Aragonesi.

The other coffins contain the remains of lesser-known individuals. Some of the coffins are empty, while coffin 14 is shared by cardinal Flavio Orsini (1532-1581) and his father. Coffin 28 contains the remains of Fernando Francesco d’Avalos d’Aquino, fifth marquess of Pescara. He was a famous condottiero who fought in the important battle of Pavia in 1525 (the battle led to the capture of the French king Francis I). The marquess died the same year. Originally the Arche Aragonesi were kept in the choir of the San Domenico, but after a fire in 1506 they were moved to the sacristy. Although the bodies were put in the coffins fully dressed when the process of embalmment was complete, all clothes and other objects were removed in the 1980s. We can see a selection in the treasury, the Sala del Tesoro next to the sacristy.

Coffins of Alfonso I, Ferrante I, Ferrante II and Joanna IV of Naples.

Panel painting with the Crucifixion.

The guide also takes visitors to the cell of Thomas Aquinas.[1] Thomas was a corpulent man who said very little, which earned him the nickname “dumb ox” (bos mutus in Latin). But there was nothing wrong with his brains and he became one of the foremost representatives of medieval theology, also known as scholasticism. Before Thomas, Christians simply accepted that their faith had elements that were mysterious and impossible to explain. Thomas, on the other hand, asserted that everything about the Christian faith could be argued rationally. He did so by using Aristotelian logic and an extensive conceptual apparatus. In his immense and never completed Summa theologiae – “Everything of theology” – the theologian laid down his doctrines. Hardworking Thomas Aquinas passed away before his fiftieth birthday. Although he taught at the University of Naples (see above), he died on 7 March 1274 in the abbey of Fossanova in Lazio while on his way to Lyon in France. In 1323 he was canonised by Pope John XXII and in 1369 his remains were taken to Toulouse. The convent of San Domenico Maggiore nevertheless possesses a relic of the saint: a humerus.

The cell of Thomas Aquinas, where he lived between 1272 and 1274, is located on the first floor of the Chiostro delle Statue. The small room contains three treasures: the aforementioned relic, a panel painting from the thirteenth century (photo on the right) and a handwritten text by Thomas himself (photo below). The panel painting features a Crucifixion with the Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist, angels and two kneeling Dominicans. The work comes from a chapel in the church of San Michele Arcangelo a Morfisa. One night Thomas was praying by the painting when suddenly Christ on the cross began speaking to him. The Saviour said that Thomas had written much good about him and asked which reward he wanted. The future saint reportedly answered:

Handwritten text by Thomas Aquinas (left).

Domine, non nisi Te!
(“Lord, nothing but you!”)

The style of the panel painting is still very Byzantine, but it is certainly a work of high quality. As was already mentioned above, a copy of the work can be found in the Cappellone del Crocifisso in the church itself.

My Capitool travel guide for Naples (2018 edition, p. 72) served as a base for this post. The San Domenico Maggiore has many information panels with detailed information. Additional information came from Basilica di San Domenico Maggiore – Wikipedia and from the source in the footnote.

Note

[1] For more information about Thomas Aquinas, see Sandra Langereis, Erasmus: Dwarsdenker, p. 249-260 (in Dutch). Erasmus was hardly a fan of Thomas and scholasticism.

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