Castellammare Cathedral

Santa Maria Assunta is the Roman Catholic duomo or cathedral of Castellammare di Stabia in the metropolitan city of Naples, region of Campania, Italy.

History

The cathedral was erected near the site of a Christian cemetery which had arisen beside the Roman road between the Ancient Roman towns of Nocera and Stabiae. The first church at the site was damaged by an earthquake in December 1456, and required reconstruction initiated in 1587 with direction by the architect Pietro Antonio de Sanctis. Work on the nave however was only completed in 1643. The atrium was not added until 1713. An new belltower was added in 1782. The church has a Latin cross layout with five lateral chapels on each side.

The Chapel of San Catello, dedicated to the patron of the town, was begun in 1875 and completed in 1893, when bishop Vincenzo Sarnelli reconsecrated the cathedral. The chapel contains a statue (1609) of the patron saint and a 3rd-4th century sarcophagus from the paleo-Christian cemetery. During Christmas it houses a life-size presepe, or nativity scene, completed during the 19th and 20th centuries. It consists of nearly 80 elements, including painted and clothed wooden statues. Assembly of the presepe statues began circa 1840, with statues by the studio of Giuseppe and Francesco Verzella made for the church of San Ferdinando, Naples. Some of those statues were moved with the bishop to this church. Others were made locally.

Further refurbishments to the church occurred in the 19th century: a wooden choir structure from the Monastery once attached to the Chiesa della Pace was introduced. The bronze entrance door were sculpted in 1983 by Antonio Berti.

Inside the church are paintings by the studio of Giuseppe Ribera, a copy of a Caravaggio altarpiece, and paintings by Vincenzo da Forli, Giovanni Battista Spinelli, Nunzio Rossi, Giuseppe Marullo, Giuseppe Bonito, and Giacinto Diano. The church has a marble ciborium (1518), attributed to Andrea da Fiesole and a statue of the Archangel St Michael attributed to the studio of Francesco Laurana.^[1]

References

1. Comune of Castellammare di Stavia, citing works by E. Valcaccia, including La città di Stabia e San Catello suo Patrono. Edizione integrata aggiornata e illustrata dell’omonima opera di G. Lauro Aiello, Castellammare di Stabia 2007; and Venite adoremus Dominum! Le rappresentazioni presepiali nei dipinti delle chiese di Castellammare di Stabia, Castellammare di Stabia, 2009.

Coordinates: 40°41′41″N 14°28′51″E / 40.6948°N 14.4809°E