San Gennaro is an important part of the history, tradition and religion of Naples. The patron saint of the gulf cit, in fact, is historically connected to the town in a very profound way, and it represents a myth whose importance is renewed every year over and over again, especially in occasion of the miraculous melting of his blood, the 19th of September, which has been preserved for centuries inside the Duomo of Naples.
The mystery of the miracle of San Gennaro in Naples is contained in two vials located inside a round display case, provided with a handle which makes it easy to move around. One of the vials, the smaller one, contains only a few drops, the bigger one, on the other hand, is almost full of this “unknown substance”. These relics containing the blood of the patron saint of the city of Naples has the power to change consistency, going from solid state to liquid state and viceversa.
This is exactly what happens during the Miracle of San Gennaro in Naples, an event that takes place three times a year: September 16, date when San Gennaro, in 1631, interceded to end the eruption of the Vesuvius; the Saturday prior the first Sunday of May, when the transfer of the saint’s body from Pozzuoli to Naples takes place; and finally, September 19, the day of his martyrdom.
Some studies on the extraordinary blood have confirmed that it is possible to recreate that substance in the vials in a lab, but it should be noted that in some cases the miracle of San Gennaro does not occur, or it happens before the vials are taken out of the special closet that typically contains them, according to the traditional procedure that for centuries has regulated the ritual display and collective wait of the miracle.
The miracle which is not officially recognized by the Church remains for the people of Naples a marvel of the utmost importance and on it taking place depends whether the year will be good or bad, with fortune or misfortune for the city. The relationship that the people of Naples have with San Gennaro is very close, confidential and straightforward: during the wait of the miraculous event, if the saint is running late in having the blood melted, “Parenti di San Gennaro” (the relatives of San Gennaro) crowding the Duomo start shouting annoyed, invoking him and calling him “faccia ‘ngialluta”; which means yellow face, due to the gold statue displayed in the church.
Who was San Gennaro?
His original name is Ianuario, and would have been a descendent of the Gens Ianuaria, a noble family sacred to Giano, the two faced god. He was made martyr on September 19, 305, at the peak of Christian persecutions wanted by the emperor Diocletian. According to the Atti bolognesi, while in prison to visit two incarcerated brothers, he too was arrested together with Festo and Desiderio, by order of the judge Dragonzio. Gennaro was forced to confess his faith and sentenced to death. He was decapitated in the surroundings of Pozzuoli’s Solfatara in a place that they used to call Foro di Vulcano. Initially, the set punishment was to be eaten alive by the animals of the Anfiteatro Flavio of Pozzuoli, but it was changed to decapitation after that, according to tradition, the saint managed to calm down the beasts that were meant to divour him.
The blood gushed due to the decapitation was collected by Eusebia, who had been his wet nurse, and after that, the story goes that twelve old ladies claimed to be related with the saint martyr, leading to a tradition that has overcome centuries and That has reached modern days: still today in fact there are the so-called “Parenti di San Gennaro” (relatives of San Gennaro).
In the VII century, at the place of the decapitation a small church was built, then replaced with a bigger building in 1580, the Santuario di San Gennaro alla Solfatara, where you can see a low relief by Andrea Vaccaro which depicts the martyrdom and the stone on which San Gennaro would have been decapitated. The saint, however, was probably buried in Agnano but later in his remains were moved to the Capodimonte catacombs. In this place, you can see a fresco picturing Sancto Martyri Ianuario between two lit candles and with a halo on his head.
The first miracle of San Gennaro in Naples
It is right when the body of the saing was being moved, in 431 A.C., that for the first time the miracle of San Gennaro’s blood melting happened, at the presence of the Bishop Severo (or Cosimo), in the area today known as Vomero. The procession carrying the saint stopped to rest in what would be today’s piazza Bernini: Eusebia put the vials containing the saint’s blood near the martyr’s head and the blood started to melt. All those who were there considered this nothing short of a miracle. The marvel, however, was documented officially for the first time in 1389, in the Chronicon Siculum, where it says that, during the Assunta celebrations, the vials were put on display and that during the procession the blood melted “as if it gushed out of the body of the saint that very moment”. In 1497, the relics and the vials were moved to the crypt underneath the Duomo’s presbytery, and they are still there to this day.
Since then, San Gennaro continues to do his work of patron and protector of the city, and is invoked by the people of Naples on several occasions – a memorable one was that time in 1944 when he was called on to stop the Vesuvius from erupting, and the lava that was about to destroy the towns around it slowed down – also to ask for help, healing and special favors.
The treasure of San Gennaro
The Treasure of San Gennaro, kept in a chapel dedicated to him, is managed by a delegation born in 1527, made of components from twelve families representative of the ancient constituency of Naples. The treasure was created following an invocation to the saint, and in exchange for his protection the town decided to provide him with a treasure. It is a huge fortune, which came to be over the centuries thanks to donations and gifts, and that includes the necklace of San Gennaro, made by Michele Dato in 1679 with gold, silver and gems, a miter made by Mattero Treglia in 1713, made of gilded silver and studded with diamonds, rubies and emeralds.
In 1844, a woman of the people, who had survived a fatal disease, gave her earrings of pearls and diamonds, which were applied to the Necklace of San Gennaro, while in 1931 King Umberto II and his wife Maria José from Belgium gifted a pyx made of gold, coral and malachite, and the queen then came back to give also her gold ring studded with diamonds. As a whole, there are about two thousand and two hundred gifts collected over the centuries, all precious, but one: a box of candies, left by two kids as a thanks for their mother’s healing.
Every year the miracle of San Gennaro in Naples, with a few exceptions, happens again and again. The relationship between the people and the saint remains unchanged – even if the arrival of Maradona took some of the attention off of him – and the Duomo gets so crowded that it might burst as they wait for the miracle. An experience worth seeing!
Featured image: Il Secolo XIX
