The
group of buildings consisting of the church of Saint Patrizia and the monastery
was built on the remains of the Temples of Cerere. According to various sources,
the church may have been built by Saint Elena, according to others by the Bishop
Nostriano. After the "Concilio di Trento", and the new rulings regarding
cloistered orders, the old chapel was completely rebuilt. We can find evidence
of these cloistered orders in the iron bars of the building's façade, in the
grilles that imprison the choir, and in the splendid lighting of the "Polito"
through which the Sisters used to communicate. The inside is aisles but has side
chapels. It is worth noting the splendid box ceiling and two gold organs. Over
the main entrance are three paintings of Luca Giordano. In the- side chapels
there are paintings by De Rosa, Malinconico and Magliulo . You enter the convent
through a stairway made of local stone ("piperno"). Beyond the vestibule there
is the wonderful cloister of Della Monica, which has arches and pillars
supporting terraces and belvederes, and a baroque fountain which provides the
base for two marble statues of the Christ and the Samaritan. In the centre there
is the Byzantine Chapel of the Madonna dell'Idria, decorated by De Matteis.
The
group of buildings consisting of the church of Saint Patrizia and the monastery
was built on the remains of the Temples of Cerere. According to various sources,
the church may have been built by Saint Elena, according to others by the Bishop
Nostriano. After the "Concilio di Trento", and the new rulings regarding
cloistered orders, the old chapel was completely rebuilt. We can find evidence
of these cloistered orders in the iron bars of the building's façade, in the
grilles that imprison the choir, and in the splendid lighting of the "Polito"
through which the Sisters used to communicate. The inside is aisles but has side
chapels. It is worth noting the splendid box ceiling and two gold organs. Over
the main entrance are three paintings of Luca Giordano. In the- side chapels
there are paintings by De Rosa, Malinconico and Magliulo . You enter the convent
through a stairway made of local stone ("piperno"). Beyond the vestibule there
is the wonderful cloister of Della Monica, which has arches and pillars
supporting terraces and belvederes, and a baroque fountain which provides the
base for two marble statues of the Christ and the Samaritan. In the centre there
is the Byzantine Chapel of the Madonna dell'Idria, decorated by De Matteis.