Myths and Legends

The land

The foundation of the city of Naples itself is linked, according to tradition, to a mythological creature, the siren, Partenope, whose story was told to us in the Odyssey's twelfth poem.

Homer described how Ulysses, driven by his proverbial curiosity to listen to the bewitching singing of the dangerous sirens, managed to resist them by being tied to his ship's mast.

Mortally offended, the creatures killed themselves by throwing themselves onto the rocks. One of them was Partenope whose remains reached the small island of Megaride where the Castel dell'Ovo stands.

Revived and venerated by the fishermen, the body of Partenope finally dissolved, giving rise to the creation of Naples. In honour of the sirens, the Lampadedromie Napoletane sports competitions were established in the V century B.C.

From ancient Greece comes another famous legend linked to Campania, that of Lake Avernus, a small lake of volcanic origin near the town of Pozzuoli, not far from the archaeological site at Cuma.  According to tradition, the Avernus was an access route to the Kingdom of the Afterlife, an immortal allure later picked up on by the great writers such as Virgil and Dante.

Tradition, art and mystery

One of the most predominant superstitions in Campania is the evil eye and the ability of the human stare to generate negative energies that influence the fate and well-being of the person being observed. Popular tradition identifies in some women the ability to work out whether someone is the victim of the evil eye and banish it using rites that often involve water and oil.

Neapolitan, and Campania culture in general also places a lot of belief in the existence of ghosts as is clear from the legends of the Munaciello, a mischievous spirit wearing a monk's habit, and the Bella ‘Mbriana, a good-natured being who counteracts him.

Legend has it, that the Munaciello was originally the overseer of citizens' wells, and would sneak into people's homes to steal from them. Another alternative legend was that he was the son of Caterinella Frezza, a rich aristocrat who fell in love with a poor delivery boy and gave birth to a deformed child.

It is said that the Bella 'Mbriana was a beautiful princess who died after losing her loved one and became a protective spirit in the home, manifesting herself in the form of a gecko, an animal regarded as bringing good luck.

Another sanctified place to the cult of the dead is the Fontanelle Cemetery at the heart of the Sanità district, with its so called "heads of the dead", or rather, rows of skulls belonging to thousands of people who died between 1600 and 1800. The tradition, still followed today, requires that the residents of the district occasionally adopt a skull, visiting it and looking after it, naturally in exchange for clemency or lottery numbers to play.

The Province of Benevento is also home to a famous legend linked to the dark forces, those of Janare, the terrible witches who came together around an ancient walnut tree to officiate over the witches' sabbath.

If the link between art and mystery is as old as art itself, the city of Naples is home to one of the most famous and mysterious works of art in the world: the Veiled Christ by Giuseppe Sanmartino, housed in the Sansevero Chapel near piazza San Domenico Maggoire.

This marble sculpture is an incredibly realistic representation of the body of Jesus. The story goes that the sculptor was taught his technique by the person himself who commissioned it, Prince Raimondo di Sangro, a famous scientist and alchemist.