Sanctuary of San Gennaro at Solfatara, a place of miracles

About this activity

The Shrine of San Gennaro is an ancient cult monument in the Phlegrean area.

It stands near the Solfatara, on the precise spot where in 305 Gennaro (bishop of Benevento) and six of his companions were beheaded for martyrdom.

Why visit the Shrine of San Gennaro

Construction of the building began in 1574 and was completed in 1580. At the same time the convent of the Capuchin Friars Minor was built next to the church, who still occupy it today and officiate at the sacred building with care and zeal.

In an account of the diocese of Pozzuoli sent by Bishop Leonardo Vairo to the pope in 1589 (Relatio ad Sacra Limina) one can read:

" ...The great and universal devotion of the Neapolitan lords have built a noble and beautiful monastery of the Capuchin fathers under the invocatione of the said saint Gianuario, where they officiate with such devotion and essemblarità of life, that piously it is believed that through the orationsi of said fathers the earthquakes ceased which were so great and assiduous that they made the houses fall down, and gave great fright to the inhabitants, and from five years on that said monastery was built there has been no other gratitude to the Lord....". (D. Ambrasi, A. D'Ambrosio, La Diocesi e i Vescovi di Pozzuoli, Naples 1990, p.90).

The first restoration was carried out according to a design by architect Ferdinando Sanfelice and dates back to 1701, concluding in 1708, the year the church was reconsecrated by Bishop Michele Petirro of Pozzuoli.

The building underwent further restoration following a fire in 1860, but it was in 1926 that the church was further embellished and embellished, thanks to various paintings by Luigi Tammaro.

On Feb. 11, 1945, Bishop Alfonso Castaldo of Pozzuoli elevated the shrine to a parish also dedicated to the martyrs Festus and Desiderius, and entrusted its care to the Capuchin Friars Minor.

The church has been one of the most famous places of worship of the saint since 1584 and a destination for devout pilgrimages, for such reasons it deserves the name of sanctuary.

The building has a simple facade and a deep pronaos. Memorial plaques can be seen on the walls.

Instead, on the portal of the piperno we find a marble bas-relief from the 1600s depicting the face of Jesus.

Of considerable interest is the chapel to the right of the nave where the stone on which (according to tradition) the saint was beheaded is venerated. In the same chapel is a bust of the saint dating from around the 12th century, to which prodigious events are attributed.

Curiosities about the Shrine of San Gennaro

• The feast in honor of St. Gennaro falls on September 19. If you are interested in hearing a mass these are the times: 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. (holidays); 9 a.m. - 6:30 p.m. (weekdays).
• A few spots of St. Gennaro's blood are still visible on the nave chapel, which in the days leading up to the anniversary of his beheading take on a ruby red color.
• The best-known prodigy occurred in 1656 during the time of the plague in Pozzuoli. It was therefore decided to carry the statue of the saint in procession from the Solfatara to the Flavian amphitheater, so that it would put an end to the terrible plague. During the procession, a yellowish spot appeared on the saint's neck, which grew larger and larger until it took on the shape of the pestilential boil that suddenly burst open, giving off a burning smell in the air. Saint Gennaro had taken the plague upon himself by ridding the people of Pozzuoli of the pestilence. The yellowish stain that appeared at the beginning of the procession is still visible today.
• Legend has it that Saracen pirates, while sacking the city, cut off the nose of the statue of San Gennaro. The various sculptors tasked with repairing the damage never managed to find a solution, but a short time later a fisherman found a small piece of marble resembling a nose in his net. He decided to take it to the church, and the piece of marble flew by itself from the man's hands going to miraculously reposition itself in its place, on the face of St. Gennaro.