Here’s a thought about death, something you really mustn’t ever mention in Naples as all kinds of socially-determined behaviours ensue, ranging from social freeze-out to any males in the company touching things beyond the scope of a polite website.
But go to the Certosa di San Martino, in the Vomero district of the city, and there, in the 17th century Great Cloister you will find the Cistercian monks’ cemetery surrounded by a beautiful balustrade topped with marble skulls.
They served both as a collective memorial to departed brethren and a memento mori (roughly “reminder of death”) to the living, especially at times when plague raged in the city below.
Ah but today this is such a tranquil and pleasant spot with its fruit trees and pretty, echoing well.
You’ll think it worth lingering a little longer to savour what life has to offer.
Now, where shall we have lunch…?
– Written by Penny Ewles-Bergeron (see bio), writer, artist, … finding the many good things in Naples.
