Naples – Tomorrow, Tuesday, December 16, starting at 9:00 a.m., the Chapel of the Treasure of San Gennaro in Naples Cathedral will host a celebration in honor of the city's patron saint, with the hope of the miraculous liquefaction of the saint's blood.
The ceremony will be presided over by Abbot Prelate Monsignor Vincenzo De Gregorio, in the presence of members of the Deputation, the body that represents the city and is responsible for promoting the cult of San Gennaro, protecting his relics, and safeguarding the priceless heritage of the Treasury.
A symbolic date for Naples
December 16th marks the third annual celebration dedicated to the Holy Martyr and has its roots in a dramatic event in Neapolitan history. The date commemorates the day in 1631 when a devastating eruption of Vesuvius threatened to engulf Naples.
According to tradition, it was the intercession of San Gennaro that saved the city: the Neapolitans carried in procession the bust with the head of the Saint and the vials containing his blood towards the river of incandescent lava, which, miraculously, stopped.
Domenichino's testimony
The miraculous event is immortalized in the fresco by Domenichino, an artist who witnessed that exceptional moment. The work, located in the lunette above the gate inside the Treasury Chapel, visually represents the procession and the miraculous intervention that saved Naples from the volcano's fury. An artistic document that becomes a historical testament to the unbreakable bond between the city and its patron saint.
Tomorrow's celebration thus renews a centuries-old tradition rooted in one of the most dramatic and miraculous events in Neapolitan history, confirming the city's unwavering devotion to San Gennaro.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
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