Skip to content
ENITSign in

Naples

Certosa di San Martino

Its Carthusian complex, church and cloisters, Neapolitan presepe collection and city-history collections.

Photograph · Certosa di San Martino

At a glance

Certosa di San Martino facts that matter

Names, makers, dates, and context before the story opens up.

What it isMuseum
WhereNaples, Campania
Known forIts Carthusian complex, church and cloisters, Neapolitan presepe collection and city-history collections.
PeriodGothic foundation; Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo transformations, 1325
MakerTino da Camaino; Giovanni Antonio Dosio; Cosimo Fanzago; Nicola Tagliacozzi Canale

The story

What you're looking at

Founded in 1325 as a Carthusian monastery and transformed over centuries, the Certosa di San Martino is a major complex of Neapolitan Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo art. Since 1867 it has housed the Museo di San Martino, with collections on the art and history of Naples.

An Angevin-period monastery repeatedly remade and converted into a state museum in 1867.

Verified details

Each statement below is linked to the record or institution that supports it.

Founded on the Vomero in the fourteenth century, the Certosa di San Martino was repeatedly renewed; the monumental complex now brings together its monastic spaces and a museum of Neapolitan art and history.1

Its original layout was designed and built by Tino da Camaino in 1325. Major later interventions included Giovanni Antonio Dosio in 1581, Cosimo Fanzago in 1623 and Nicola Tagliacozzi Canale in 1723.2

The National Museum of San Martino holds Italy’s principal public collection devoted to the Neapolitan presepe.3

Sources and citations (3)
  1. Musei Nazionali del VomeroCertosa e Museo di San MartinoInstitutional overviewRead source
  2. Biblioteca Nazionale di NapoliCertosa di San Martino historyHistoryRead source
  3. MiC CampaniaPresepe collectionCollection overviewRead source

Plan your visit

Before you go

Booking
Walk-up friendly
Maker
Tino da Camaino; Giovanni Antonio Dosio; Cosimo Fanzago; Nicola Tagliacozzi Canale
Period
Gothic foundation; Renaissance, Baroque and Rococo transformations · 1325

Find it

Where to find Certosa di San Martino

Get directionsGoogle MapsApple Maps

Nearby

More to see in Naples

Worth folding into the same day.

  1. Castel Nuovo's dark towers framing the white Aragonese arch, NaplesNaplesCastel NuovoIts Angevin foundation, Aragonese reconstruction, the Palatine Chapel, Sala dei Baroni and Civic Museum.
  2. The rose-red palazzo of the National Archaeological Museum, NaplesNaplesNaples National Archaeological MuseumThe Farnese collection and archaeological material from the Vesuvian towns.
  3. The Royal Palace's long red front on Piazza del Plebiscito, NaplesNaplesRoyal Palace of NaplesFontana’s façade, the Scalone d’Onore, the Appartamento di Etichetta and Teatro di Corte.
  4. The neogothic facade of Naples Cathedral, home of San Gennaro's miracleNaplesNaples CathedralIts Angevin Gothic fabric, Santa Restituta, the Baptistery of San Giovanni in Fonte and the Chapel of the Treasure of San Gennaro.
  5. Castel dell'Ovo on its islet in the Bay of NaplesNaplesCastel dell'OvoIts Megaride-islet setting, Norman-period survival and the Virgil-and-egg legend.
  6. Inside the Sansevero Chapel, the Veiled Christ among its marblesNaplesSansevero ChapelThe Veiled Christ by Sanmartino, Pudicizia by Corradini, Disinganno by Queirolo and Giuseppe Salerno’s Anatomical Machines.
All Naples monumentsThe Naples guideAll monuments

Reading

Stories from Campania

Long reads from our writers on the ground.

  1. The magazineAmalfi Coast Travel Guide