The project was signed by Domenico Fontana, who built a late-renaissance style palace and classical elements around a central square courtyard on the ground floor and with an internal loggia on all four sides on the first floor. With Charles of Bourbon on the throne, the palace was enlarged with other buildings facing both the sea and the Vesuvius with the Apartment of the Royal Princes. The interiors were embellished in late-baroque style with marble and frescoes by Francesco De Mura and Domenico Antonio Vaccaro. Under Ferdinand II of Bourbon, the architect Gaetano Genovese did a complete restoration in neoclassical style. After the unification of Italy, the palace was acquired by the State Property and a century ago it was reassembled as a National Library, while the wing of the courtyard of honor, treasure chest of valuable works, was used as a Museum of Historic Apartment. The visit is manly about the Royal Representative Apartment with its works of art and sumptuous furnishings dating back to the period between the 18th and 19th centuries. The tour also includes the Little Theater of the Court and the Cappella Palatina designed by Cosimo Fanzago, dedicated to the Assumption.
The Hanging Garden
The original Belvedere Garden was set up in the mid 17th century on a large terrace located around the new apartment of the viceregina Ana Fernandez de Cordoba. With the works of renovations started with the advent of Charles of Bourbon, the garden on the terrace was also revisited and adorned with busts, flower vases and a central fountain. In the 19th century the final rearrangement of the flower beds took place adding other decorative elements according to the design of Gaetano Genovese. The recent restoration also took care of the recovery of the original structure and botanical species.
Piazza Plebiscito
From Thursday to Tuesday 9.00-19.00 Wednesday closed
Full ticket 10 euro
mask is recommended
www.palazzorealedinapoli.org
The Gallery of Time
In the newly restored space of the 18th century Bourbon Stables, an intriguing multimedia itinerary has been created, full of culture and suggestions, crossing 25 centuries of the history of Naples, from the Greek-Roman era to the recognition of the city center as a Unesco heritage in the 20th century, enhancing the most significant characters of the various eras and reproducing the atmospheres of places and monuments, also with the help of works of art.
Useful info: Visits for persons with a disability from Monday to Friday 9.00-14.00 by reservation and tactile itinerary.
Guided tours with reservation at www.coopculture.it
