A Unique Church
La Chiesa di Santa Maria delle Anime del Purgatorio ad Arco
Why locals love it
Napoli has many beautiful churches, but this is a gem.I have never seen something of the kind anywhere else.This church was built during the period when the cult of the purgatory's souls was recognized by the Catholic church from the 1600 until 1969.Praying to the souls of the purgatory has strong links to the popular culture of the south of Italy
Why you should visit it
It is unlikely that you will see a church of this kind anywhere else, probably world-wide. From an architectonic point of view, the church is built on a two-layer structure, two churches mirrors each other, one at surface level for the cult of the heaven and one underground emptied of any decoration with a black cross dedicated to the purgatory.
Special tip
You can choose whether to have a guide or not, but a guide tour will give you access to the underground level (ipogeo). A guide tour costs only 4 EUR!
Mon-Fr: 10:00-14:00