Eustace Neville-Rolfe

“ Persons interested in frescoes will admire those in the former monastery at the back of the church of S. Maria Donna Regina and those in the cloister of S. Severino and Sossio. A more ancient Christian monument than any of the convents or churches is the catacombs, which extend a great distance underground and are in many respects finer than those at Rome. The entrance is at the Ospizio dei Poveri di San Gennaro (see Schulze’s monograph, Jena, 1877) .
Of the secular institutions in Naples none is more remarkable than the National Museum, formerly known as the Museo Borbonico. ”

“ Naples is the see of a Roman Catholic archbishop, always a cardinal. The cathedral has a chapter of thirty canons, and of the numerous religious houses formerly existing very few have in whole or in part survived the suppression in 1868. The city is divided into fifty parishes purely for ecclesiastical purposes, and there are 237 Roman Catholic churches and 57 chapels.
Most of the churches are remarkable rather for richness in internal decoration than for architectural beauty. ”

“ The character of the shore of the eastern crescent has been much altered by the new harbour works, which with the wharves and warehouses have absorbed the Villa del Popolo, or People’s Park, originally constructed on land reclaimed from the bay.
The streets of Naples are generally well-paved with large blocks of lava or volcanic basalt. In the older districts there is a countless variety of narrow gloomy streets, many of them steep. ”

“ The port of Naples is second in the kingdom, and owns no rival save Genoa.
Water Supply.—Since 1884 Naples has had as fine a water supply as any city in Europe. It is derived from the hills in the neighbourhood of Avellino, and is thought to be the effluent of an underground lake. It rushes out from the hillside and is received in a covered masonry canal, whence it flows in large iron pipes till it reaches five enormous reservoirs constructed just opposite to the entrance gates of the royal palace at Capodimonte. ”

“ The effect on the health of the city has been extraordinary. Cholera epidemics, which used to be frequent, have become things of the past, and there is now abundant water for public fountains, washing the streets and watering gardens both public and private. ”

“ The north-west shore to the west of Naples is more broken and irregular. The promontory of Posilipo, which projects due south, divides this part of the bay into two smaller bays—the eastern, with the city of Naples, and the western, or Bay of Baiae, which is sheltered from all winds. A tunnel through the promontory, 2244 ft. long, 21 ft. broad, and in some places as much as 70 ft. high, possibly constructed by Marcus Agrippa in 27 B.C., forms the so-called grotto of Posilipo; at the Naples end stands the reputed tomb of Virgil. Beyond Posilipo is the small island of Nisida (Nesis) ”

“ The view from the south-western balcony is incomparable. The marble cloister by Fonsega, though rather flamboyant in character, is one of the finest of its kind in existence. Other churches with interesting monuments are Sant’ Anna dei Lombardi, built in 1411 by Guerrello Origlia, which contains some splendid marble sculpture, especially Rosellino’s “Nativity” in the Cappella Piccolomini; Sant’ Angelo a Nilo, which contains the tomb of Cardinal Brancaccio, the joint work of Donatello and Michelozzo ”

“ Elementary education has proceeded with great rapidity, and there are ninety public elementary schools in the city, twenty-three ecclesiastical gratuitous schools and many evangelical schools at a very small payment. The higher grade schools are also numerous, and there are special foreign schools established by private enterprise for the education of the children of foreign residents. ”

“ A special confirmation is given in this case, as the Siren is represented mounted on her sea-horse crossing the Styx upon the vase of Pluto and Proserpine in the collection of the Naples Museum. This vase dates about 250 B.C., and the Siren charms represent her in the same way, but usually mounted on two sea-horses. The sea-horse and the Siren alone are commonly found as charms; the Siren being sometimes in her fishtail form and sometimes in the form of a harpy. ”

“ On the north slope of this peninsula, where the plain ends and the coast abruptly bends to the west, stands the town of Castellammare, near the site of Stabiae, at the foot of Monte Sant' Angelo, which rises suddenly from the sea to a height of 4722 ft. Farther west, and nearly opposite to Naples across the bay, are Vico, Meta, Sorrento, Massa and many villages. ”

“ It has a good though not perfect collection of the early Neapolitan newspapers, a complete file of the principal modern ones and many interesting MSS. The society is governed by a council of literary men, and issues publications from time to time. The Zoological Station or Aquarium has a very fine biological library. ”

“ The site of Palaeopolis has given rise to much discussion, but the researches by R. T. Günther open completely new ground, and seem to be the correct solution of the problem. He places Palaeopolis at Gaiola Point and has discovered the remains of the harbour, the town hall and various other rudiments of the ancient city. This site, moreover, corresponds with Livy’s testimony, and would account for his statement that the towns of Palaeopolis and Neapolis were near together. ”

“ From that time Palaeopolis totally disappeared from history, and Neapolis became an allied city (foederata civitas) —a dependency of Rome, to whose alliance it remained constantly faithful, even in the most trying circumstances. In 280 B.C. Pyrrhus unsuccessfully attacked its walls; and in the Second Punic War Hannibal was deterred by their strength from attempting to make himself master of the town. ”

“ The depth of this new harbour is from 25 to 30 ft. There are two projecting moles, one to the inner harbour and the second to the steam basin. In 1905 the total tonnage entering the port amounted to 4,698,872 tons, of which the Italians (including their coasting trade) carried 1,410,192 tons in 3687 vessels; the Germans 1,391,585 tons in 356 vessels; the British 1,136,345 tons in 402 vessels; and the French 245,206 tons in 161 vessels. Naples is the principal port for emigration, chiefly to North and South America; 281 emigrant ships sailed in 1905, carrying 216,103 emigrants. ”