Naples, Gentle Parthenope

Castel dell'Ouvo

Seconda patria mia, dolce Sirena,
Parthenope gentil, casta cittade
Nida di leggiadria & nobilitade,
D’ogni vertute & di delicie piena.

‘My second fatherland, sweet Siren,
gentle Parthenope, virtuous city,
nest of loveliness and nobility,
full of every virtue and delight’.

Benedetto Cariteo, Endimione.  1450 – 1514
Picture: Anton Sminck van Pitloo, Castel dell’Ovo dalla spiaggia.  Via Wiki.

Image

Naples from Castel dell’Ovo

Castel dell’Ovo (in Italian, Egg Castle) is a seaside castle located on the former island of Megaride, now a peninsula, on the Gulf of Naples in Italy. The castle’s name comes from a legend about the Roman poet Virgil, who had a reputation in medieval times as a great sorcerer and predictor of the future. In the legend, Virgil put a magical egg into the foundations to support the fortifications. Had this egg been broken, the castle would have been destroyed and a series of disastrous events would have involved the city of Naples. The castle is located between the districts of San Ferdinando and Chiaia, opposite the zone Mergellina.

Source: Wiki.