UNESCO and NAPLES
Naples World Heritage
From Neapolis, founded by Greek colonists in 470 BC, to the city of today, Naples has preserved the imprint of the cultures that have succeeded one another in Europe and the Mediterranean basin. This makes it a unique place, rich in extraordinary monuments such as the Church of Santa Chiara and Castel Nuovo.
Historic Centre of Naples – UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Due to its extraordinary historical and cultural value, the Historic Center of Naples was officially inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995.
The inscription is the result of a rigorous nomination process, which requires the submission of a detailed dossier by the Member State, containing comparative studies, cartographic documentation, integrity and authenticity analyses, and proof of the site’s outstanding universal value.
The recognition by the World Heritage Committee not only celebrates the uniqueness of Naples, but also entrusts the city and its institutions with the responsibility of protecting and enhancing this heritage for future generations.
Exceptional Universal Value
Located in southern Italy, Naples is an important port city at the center of the ancient Mediterranean region. Its origins date back to its founding as Parthenope or Palaepolis in the 9th century BC, later reconstituted as Neapolis (New City) in 470 BC. It is therefore one of the oldest cities in Europe, whose current urban fabric preserves a selection of exceptional elements from its long and eventful history, as evidenced by its street layout, wealth of historic buildings and parks, the preservation of many of its urban and social functions, its splendid location on the Gulf of Naples, and the continuity of its historical stratification.
Naples was one of the most important cities of Magna Graecia and played a key role in transmitting Greek culture to Roman society. It eventually became an important cultural center of the Roman Republic, civitas foederata. Sections of the Greek city walls, unearthed after World War II, and the remains of a Roman theater, cemeteries, and catacombs bear witness to this history. In the 6th century AD, Naples was conquered by the Byzantine Empire, becoming an autonomous duchy, later associated with the Normans, the Swabians, and the Kingdom of Sicily. Evidence of this period can be found in the churches of San Gennaro extra moenia, San Giorgio Maggiore, and San Giovanni Maggiore, with architectural elements dating back to the 4th and 5th centuries, the chapel of Santa Restituta in the 14th-century cathedral, and Castel dell’Ovo, one of the most significant remains of the Norman period, although it has been renovated on several occasions.
With the Angevin dynasty (1265-1442), Naples became the living symbol of the dynasty’s prestige, dignity, and power. The city expanded to include the suburbs and nearby villages. The Angevins also initiated an influential relationship with Western art and architecture, particularly French Gothic, integrated with earlier Greek and Arab elements. The convents of Santa Chiara and San Lorenzo Maggiore and the churches of Donna Regina and dell’Incoronata, San Lorenzo Maggiore, San Domenico Maggiore, and the new Cathedral date from this period.
From the 15th to the 17th century, Naples was ruled by the Aragonese, who rebuilt the defenses and street layout and built the largely Tuscan-style Castel Nuovo as one of the main centers of their empire. The period of Spanish rule is marked by the Royal Palace, built in 1600 along one side of the imposing Piazza del Plebiscito, the charitable institution Monte dei Poveri Vergognosi, the convent of Sant’Agostino degli Scalzi, and the Jesuit College in Capodimonte.
From 1734, under Bourbon rule, Naples emerged, alongside Paris and London, as one of the major capitals of Europe. The architectural heritage of Naples from this period had a great influence, which is particularly evident in the interior design of the royal palaces and associated noble residences that were part of the territorial system that extended well beyond the city itself. Among the most important palaces of the 18th century are the large Albergo dei Poveri palace, the National Archaeological Museum, the Certosa di Suor Orsola Benincasa on the hill of San Martino, and Villa Pignatelli.
The parts that make up the serial site are: the historic center of Naples; the district of Villa Manzo, Santa Maria della Consolazione; Marechiaro; the district of Casale; the district of Santo Strato and Villa Emma.
Criteria I – The city’s location on the Gulf of Naples gives it an exceptional universal value that has had a profound influence in many parts of Europe and beyond. Naples has exerted a great influence on the rest of Europe since ancient times, as an important center of Magna Graecia and the Roman Republic. Its role as one of the most influential cultural centers in the Mediterranean region was reconfirmed in the Middle Ages and then again from the 16th to the 18th centuries, when it was one of the major European capitals and exerted an important influence in many cultural fields, particularly in art and architecture.
Criteria IV – Naples is one of the oldest cities in Europe, whose contemporary urban fabric preserves elements of its long and eventful history. The rectangular grid plan of the ancient Greek foundation of Neapolis is still recognizable and has continued to provide the basic form for the current urban fabric of the historic center of Naples, one of the major port cities of the Mediterranean. From the Middle Ages to the 18th century, Naples was a benchmark in terms of art and architecture, as evidenced by its ancient fortresses, royal complexes such as the 17th-century Royal Palace, and the palaces and churches commissioned by noble families.
The World Heritage site of the Historic Center of Naples includes all the essential elements that contribute to its Outstanding Universal Value. These include the historic center bounded by the Aragonese walls, as well as significant elements from the 18th century, including important palaces and buildings used for government, residential, university, health, and craft purposes. These buildings and functions represent all the relevant periods in the history of Naples and are in a good state of conservation. The city’s important historical relationship with the sea is maintained through the preservation of Roman archaeological remains along the coast and the restoration of small tourist ports located from Castel Nuovo to Capo Posillipo.
Integrity measures how complete and intact the natural and/or cultural heritage and its attributes are.
The condition of integrity is based on three elements:
• that the site includes all the elements necessary to express its Outstanding Universal Value;
• that the site is of adequate size to ensure the complete representation of the characteristics and processes that convey the significance of the property;
• that the site is free from adverse effects of development and/or neglect.
In 2011, the World Heritage Committee approved a minor boundary modification. This expanded the ‘Historic Center of Naples’ component and merged and expanded the ‘Casale District’ and ‘Santo Strato District’ components to include an undeveloped and protected archaeological area. The site is vulnerable to a lack of maintenance of the non-monumental urban fabric. The site’s environment is intact and not threatened by development.
The urban plan has a high degree of authenticity and preserves numerous examples of the Greco-Roman city and the checkerboard layout of the 16th-century “Spanish quarters.” The typology of public and private buildings has been well preserved in the current urban plan, as have their spatial, volumetric, and decorative characteristics. There is remarkable continuity in the use of materials, all of local origin, and in the distinctive visual and material characteristics, such as yellow tuff, white marble, and gray piperno. The techniques developed for the use of these materials have survived to a considerable extent and are used in restoration and conservation projects.
The 1972 General Urban Development Plan (Ministerial Decree No. 1829 of March 31, 1972) identifies the protected area of the historic center, where all interventions must be approved by the competent Superintendency. The General Urban Development Plan confirmed the requirements of the previous plan, expanding the scope of the defined historic center. The provisions of Law No. 47 of February 28, 1985, on “Regulations relating to urban planning and construction, penalties, restoration, and redevelopment of illegal works” are applicable to the area and establish specifications for the height and distance of buildings. A large number of buildings in the city are designated under Law No. 1089 of June 1, 1939, the fundamental text of Italian legislation on heritage protection. These rules were subsequently incorporated into the Code of Cultural Heritage and Landscape of Legislative Decree No. 42/2004.
This means that these buildings are subject to a safeguard measure that ensures that any activity on the site must be authorized by the competent Superintendency (a branch office of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities), which may deny authorization for conservation reasons, authorize interventions with restrictions, or authorize only interventions that do not damage the resource in question.
Other national and regional statutes and regulations relating to urban planning and heritage control also apply to the historic center of Naples. The national bodies responsible are the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities, the Regional Council of Campania, the Provincial Council of Naples, and the Municipal Council of Naples. The management of the World Heritage site is entrusted to a municipal office created for the enhancement of the historic center of Naples. This office is responsible for a World Heritage site management plan that guides its preservation and protection, while ensuring that Naples remains a vibrant and lively city. The plan will be monitored regularly to ensure its effectiveness and will be updated every 6-10 years. The objective of the management plan is to safeguard the cultural heritage and preserve the layered urban fabric, support traditional socio-economic interrelationships and cultural production, as well as the quality of life, maintain mixed uses, increase safety and hygiene, and raise awareness and improve understanding of heritage resources. The aim is also to integrate the site into the wider territorial system comprising the Bay of Naples, Capri, Sorrento, Herculaneum, and Pompeii, in the context of cultural tourism in the area.
