Rione Angri in Sant'Agnello

The municipality of Sant’Agnello is divided into several districts, also called “rione” in Italian: the Cappuccini district, the Colli di Fontanelle district, the Maiano district, the Tordara-Trasaella district and the Angri district.

The latter is considered the historic centre of Sant’Agnello and the oldest one.

The built of Rione Angri dates back mainly to the 1700s, except for the Church of SS Annunziata, erected in the fifteenth century.

But let’s see, what to see in this ancient place…

The Church of SS. Annunziata

As a first step, we recommend you to start precisely from the Church of SS Annunziata, the oldest 15th-century testimony of Rione Angri and, more in general, of Sant’Agnello as a whole. The church is located in Via Angri.

In 1919, the Vatican Chapter crowned the altarpiece of the Annunziata Sanctuary and last year there were celebrations for the centenary of that event.

Inside the Church, it is possible to admire the sacred image of the Archangel Gabriel, the Holy Spirit and the Virgin at the moment of the Annunciation. The artwork is by the Neapolitan master Silvestro Buono and was made in 1582.

The Coronation of the prodigious image was invoked by the inhabitants of the whole Sorrento Peninsula for the multitude of graces and favours granted.

Sessa Chandlery

Continue until the Sessa Chandlery, always in Via Angri. this is, in fact, one of the few factories left in Italy and the only one in the Sorrento Peninsula which has been dealing with the processing of virgin beeswax since the late 1800s.

Matteotti Square

Then, continue to Piazza Matteotti, the seat of the town hall and the city centre. Born in the early twentieth century, the square, together with the surrounding streets, was created by bridging an ancient valley, extended from the Gulf of Pecoriello to the current city centre. The current town hall was born as a school building, designed by Engineer Luigi Amalfi. Initially, the municipality was in Corso Italia, in another building that still nowadays is at the corner of Via Angri. During the Fascist period, when the municipal seat of the ceased municipalities of the Sorrento Peninsula was established in Sant’Agnello, a part of the school building became a Town Hall and the other half continued to be used as a school.

At the centre of the square, it is possible to admire the War Memorial, by the sculptor Giovanni Nicolini. The monument was inaugurated in 1924: it shows a lying infantryman with his sword in his hand and his shield.
Behind the municipal building, you can admire the headquarters of the Mutual Aid Workers’ Society. Like Sedil Dominova in Sorrento, it is an association that, since its early years, assisted workers who, for various reasons, remained unemployed and continues to carry out various activities for its citizens.

Saint Joseph Sanctuary

In front of the Town Hall, you can go up a narrow staircase that connects the city centre with the square in front of the churchyard of the Church of San Giuseppe. The latter was opened for worship in 1907.

The Romanesque sanctuary of San Giuseppe is characterized by a white marble facade and is surmounted by a statue of Christ, by the sculptor Galli from Lucca. A bas-relief placed on the entrance door depicting St. Joseph among the Angels adorns the façade together with two statues of St. Peter and Paul by the same author. Inside the church, it is possible to admire several frescoes by the Veronese painter Agostino Pegrassi, such as the central painting of the vault, which represents “The Glory of San Giuseppe”, “The wedding of San Giuseppe and Maria” and “Il Tansito di San Giuseppe “.