Village

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Località: Via Canalone, 5 - Procida - Napoli

Terra Murata

Past the Church of S.M. delle Grazie, one leaves on the left side the wide Castle known as the “Schianata” (because in the 16th century the land was flattened), and goes up the Castello slope that leads to the buildings formerly used as a Prison House (1830-1988), dominated by the bulk of the Mill, built in 1764 for the milling of grains imported during the famine. Where the slope forms an elbow, it is possible to admire Procida’s most characteristic landscape: the overlapping, multicolored houses of Marina Corricella, a striking amphitheater open to the sea; just beyond, to the east, the Dominican convent of S.Margherita nuova (1586-1956; under reconstruction) is outlined against the blue sky. In order to build the convent and church on that steep rock, it was necessary to raise a complex of piers topped by arches, which form the most characteristic part of the Punta dei Monaci.

One continues to climb, and under the arch, to the right, the small chapel of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is visible; on the walls are a number of black crosses marking the burial of political prisoners who were victims of a massacre (1849); continuing on, one reaches the Square of Arms, enclosed on one side by tall dwellings, which once served the people to resist invading enemies. At the far end is the Royal Palace, also known as the “Castle,” erected in 1563 by Cardinal of Aragon Innico d’Avalos (Abbot of San Michele).This building was used as a royal residence for two and a half centuries and then became the Bagno Penale in the early decades of the 1800s. To the complex that encompasses part of the Terra Murata(so-called because of its medieval fortifications),overlooking the sea, was later added the construction of the modern prison that appears on the left of the Piazza d’Armi. Since 1988 the whole prison has been completely closed. From the Piazza d’Armi on Good Friday, the “Mysteries,” the characteristic wooden and paper representations of the Holy Scriptures, prepared by Procidan youths on the day of the Passion of Christ, depart for the Procession. On the right side of the square, before the castle, begins the ascent of Via S. Michele(dedicated to the island’s patron saint), which still bears on its walls the traces of the ancient “porta di mezz’omo” built in the 16th century to allow access to the village of Terra Murata proper. The only road leading to the village, before the 16th century,was Via Tabaia, which started from the Marina del Santo Cattolico and through the Vigna led to the land gate (destroyed in 1563 following the construction of the Aragonese castle). Where the Piazza d’Armi is today there were ditches dug to thwart the enemy, to prevent them from reaching the ancient center of the island, a fortress that had developed on the highest hill (m. 91 s/m), in an obvious defensive position. When the gate of mezz’omo was built, the ancient street of “ditches” was widened, and the San Michele slope was built. After finishing the short ascent, one faces the Conservatorio delle orfane founded in 1656 to take in plague victims.

A vantage point is the belvedere of Via Borgo(on the left) that opens to a breathtaking view of the Gulf of Naples. Note on the esplanade a house, a typical example of local architecture. But the most important building in Terra Murata is undoubtedly the Abbey of St. Michael (16th cent.), originally a Benedictine convent(7th-8th cent.), which was in the course of its history sacked, destroyed and rebuilt several times because of raids by the Saracens(the name by which the Neapolitans have been referring to the Islamists since the time of the Arabs, but in this period the raiders were the Ottomans). One of these incursions was avoided thanks to the miraculous appearance of St. Michael(patron saint of the island) before the troops of the barbarians who, out of fright and in their haste to flee, threw a heavy anchor into the sea, which is still kept in the abbey today. The abbey houses numerous works of art, such as a painting of St. Michael(by the school of Luca Giordano) in the center of a striking coffered ceiling. In front of the church’s main entrance is the Guarracino Square, the ancient meeting point of the people.

In this village, mild and serene, inhabited by quiet people, the straducce are like a gut, all a coming and going of passages, of corridors, of covered streets; an opening everywhere of doors, of stairs, of windows and of wells full of water. The charm of this exceptional locality is probably increased by the feeling of abandonment and quietness that one breathes.

Photo by Stefano Guidi

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