Abbey of St. Michael Archangel in Procida

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In the heart of the ancient village of Terra Murata in Procida, at a height of about 91 meters, stands the imposing Abbey of St. Michael the Archangel, the oldest church on the island that has played a central religious and cultural role in the island of Procida's past.

History of the Abbey of St. Michael the Archangel

The Abbey of St. Michael the Archangel has been the religious and cultural center of the island.

Founded in 1026, it was primarily a Benedictine monastery, dedicated to the worship of St. Angelo. Destroyed and rebuilt several times over the centuries, its present architecture dates from the 16th century. The current layout of the church, in fact, is the result of a long series of architectural stratifications that followed one another over the course of several centuries, the most important being by Cardinal Innico D'Avalos in 1561, who gave it the architectural imprint that is still recognizable today.

The Abbey was named after St. Michael the Archangel, patron saint of Procida, only later, most likely at the end of the 15th century.

The structure and interior of the Abbey

The entire complex is on two levels: the church on the upper level and the abbey complex on the lower level.

Inside the Abbey we find precious 18th-century marble, the central organ, the largest preserved in Campania, and three other precious smaller wooden bellows organs of Neapolitan manufacture.

The Abbey has three naves and seventeen altars. The nave has a coffered ceiling dating from the 17th century made of wood and pure gold, in the center of which dominates the most prestigious painting in the entire church: St. Michael defeating Satan, made by Roman painter Luigi Garzi in 1699. A 17th-century wooden choir and four paintings occupy the apse. The paintings, dated 1690, were made by Neapolitan painter Nicola Russo, a Baroque artist and pupil of Luca Giordano. Prominent among them is the canvas depicting the apparition of St. Michael the Archangel intent on protecting the island from the dreaded Saracens.

Also of relevance are other oils on board titled The Trinity, The martyrdom of St. Catherine of Alexandria and The Judgement of Saint Lucia before the tyrant of Syracuse., whose artists' names have not reached us. Two large and valuable chapels are located to the right and left of the apse. The Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament and the Chapel of Pentecost, inside which can be found an anchor found by the island's inhabitants and attributed to the Saracens put to flight by the Archangel.

The Abbey has two different entrances, the main one, known as Porta del Carmine with its piperno stone portal dating from the 1600s, and the secondary entrance, which is on the opposite side, characterized by the presence of a statue of St. Michael the Archangel and the inscription "Defende nos in praelio" ("Defend us in battle").

The most important things to know about Abbey of St. Michael the Archangel

The Abbey of St. Michael Archangel is among the most prestigious and richest churches in southern Italy. Beneath the church are the dungeons, a real museum complex divided into several levels.

Here is a wonderful 18th-century nativity scene composed mainly of shepherds of the Neapolitan school, made of wood and terracotta, the Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary, the Chapel of St. Michael with the library of texts dating back to the 16th century, and finally the Segreta, once a place of prayer for the brotherhood of the Reds. Unfortunately, the dungeons cannot be visited at present.