Santuario Madonna dell'Arco
Sant'Anastasia (NA)
KnownSacred art
The story
At the foot of Vesuvius, the Marian sanctuary draws every Easter Monday the fujenti dressed in white, among walls covered with ex voto and promises of grace.
Access
Free; peak on Easter Monday
The story
The Sanctuary of the Madonna dell'Arco stands at Sant'Anastasia, at the foot of Vesuvius. It is tied to a fifteenth-century votive image that, according to tradition, began to bleed in 1450 after being struck during a game. The first stone of the sanctuary was laid in 1593, and the Dominicans took charge of it a few years later.
What to see
The great Marian church, with the venerated image and the walls thick with votive offerings accumulated over five centuries. But the heart of the sanctuary is popular devotion: on Easter Monday the 'fujenti' arrive in procession from all of Campania, with an ancient chant, in one of the most deeply felt and intense manifestations of faith in the region.
Tips
It is a very living place of worship, above all in the Easter Monday pilgrimage: if you happen upon it, experience it with respect for the devotees and their tradition. On other days it is a more secluded visit. Check hours and events on the sanctuary's channels. You are at Sant'Anastasia, at the foot of Vesuvius.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Sanctuary of the Madonna dell'Arco?
A great Marian sanctuary at Sant'Anastasia, at the foot of Vesuvius, tied to a fifteenth-century votive image; it is the goal of a very intense popular devotion in Campania.
Who are the 'fujenti'?
The pilgrims who, on Easter Monday, reach the sanctuary in procession from all of Campania, with an ancient chant: a deeply felt popular devotion, to be experienced with respect.
Where is the sanctuary?
At Sant'Anastasia, at the foot of Vesuvius, in the Vesuvian area east of Naples.
More gems: Sacred art
Sacred artCappella Sansevero (Cristo Velato)
Napoli (NA)
Beneath a veil of marble that still seems to breathe, Sanmartino's Cristo Velato rests in the chapel's half-light, and the whiteness of the stone deceives every eye.
Sacred artDuomo di Napoli
Napoli
Three times a year the city holds its breath as the blood of San Gennaro waits to liquefy, among Gothic naves and the gold of the chapel devoted to him.
Sacred artCappella del Tesoro di San Gennaro
Napoli
Behind a bronze gate lie silverware, gems and the jewel-studded mitre of the saint: a treasure heaped up over centuries by the devotion of Naples.
Sacred artChiesa del Gesù Nuovo
Napoli
The facade of pyramid-cut piperno stone hides symbols carved into the blocks, while inside the Baroque bursts out in marble and in the memory of the physician Giuseppe Moscati.
Sacred artChiostro di Santa Chiara
Napoli
A garden of pillars clad in yellow and blue majolica, where lemon pergolas and eighteenth-century scenes painted on the tiles keep the noise of the city at bay.
Sacred artSanta Maria delle Anime del Purgatorio ad Arco
Via Tribunali 39
Bronze skulls stand guard at the entrance, and down in the hypogeum the cult of the anime pezzentelle (adopted souls of the dead) still leaves flowers and prayers beside abandoned crania.