Dr. Paolo Alei

This webinar lecture will lead you into the mysterious meander of subterranean Naples. We will explore the so-called terre sante (holy lands), namely underground cemeteries, where for centuries Neapolitans have amassed dead bodies especially in times of pandemics. The Cemetery of the Fontanelle, a former monumental Greek quarry, is not only the biggest among the terre sante, but also the most fascinating one. In the last centuries, men and women have come to the Fontanelle to adopt skulls whose souls, ideally in Purgatory, would have established an intimate relationship with the living. The empathetic reciprocity between the dead and the living, united by the same condition and grief, led to the adoption of thousands of dead bodies in hope their souls would offer protection in exchange of prayers. Through anthropology, myth and faith, the Fontanelle shows how the sacred and the profane have coexisted in the entrails of one of the oldest cities in the world up until the 21st century.