Certosa di San Giacomo

Capri

KnownSacred art

Certosa di San Giacomo, Capri
Norberto Chavez-Tapia · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The story

Silent cloisters and fourteenth-century walls of a charterhouse facing the sea, where time seems to have stopped among white arches and gardens.

Access

🎟️ combined ticket, closed Monday

The story

The Charterhouse of San Giacomo is the oldest monastery of Capri: it was founded in 1371 by Count Giacomo Arcucci, on land donated by Queen Joanna I of Anjou. A charterhouse of monks until the nineteenth century, then a barracks and shelter, today it is a monumental complex in the heart of the island.

What to see

The cloisters, the church and the spaces of the monastery, with a fourteenth-century fresco by Niccolò di Tommaso; the rooms dedicated to the German painter Karl Wilhelm Diefenbach, with his great canvases; and, since 2024, the new Archaeological Museum of Capri, with finds from the Roman imperial villas.

How to get there

  • Hydrofoil
  • Ferry

Tips

The Charterhouse has its own entrance and hours: check on the official channels (it houses a museum, exhibition rooms and events). It is in the centre of Capri, a few minutes from the little square, near the Gardens of Augustus. An oasis of quiet far from the crowd.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Charterhouse of San Giacomo?

The oldest monastery of Capri, founded in 1371 by Count Giacomo Arcucci; today a monumental complex with cloisters, the canvases of Diefenbach and, since 2024, the Archaeological Museum of Capri.

What can you see at the Charterhouse?

The cloisters and the church, a fourteenth-century fresco, the great works of Karl Wilhelm Diefenbach and the archaeological finds from the Roman imperial villas.

Where is the Charterhouse of San Giacomo?

In the centre of Capri, a few minutes from the little square, near the Gardens of Augustus.

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