From June 19 to July 3, 2025, the Carthusian Monastery of San Martino in Naples will offer visitors three special openings in the evening hours, during which it will also be possible to access the Gothic Undergrounds by reservation. The initiative, promoted by the Vomero National Museums, is a rare opportunity to explore the 14th-century foundations of the monumental complex, which are normally closed to the public. The openings will take place on Thursdays, June 19 and 26 and July 3, from 5 to 9 p.m., with last admission allowed at 8 p.m. During each evening, it will be possible to visit the Monumental Courtyard and Church, the Nativity Section, the Procurator’s Cloister, the Cona dei Lani and the Androne delle Carrozze, the Naval Section, the Quarto del Priore, the Great Cloister and the Strozzi Table.
The centerpiece of the evenings will be the opening of the Gothic Underground to the public, whose visit will be reserved for two daily shifts, the first at 5 p.m. and the second at 6:45 p.m., and will be possible only with prior reservation. The groups, consisting of a maximum of 25 participants per shift, will be guided by Acting Director Luigi Gallo and the museum’s art historians, who will lead visitors along a route of special historical and architectural value. The Undergrounds represent one of the few still-visible vestiges of the original structure of the Charterhouse, dating back to the Angevin period. Consisting of a Gothic layout that is partly still preserved, these rooms develop beneath the present Baroque building, revealing a lesser-known but fundamental face for understanding the construction phases and historical transformations of the complex.
The tour will also include the exploration of a collection of portals and sculptures from buildings that have now disappeared, kept in the basement itself. These are important fragments that illustrate the urban and religious fabric of medieval Naples, helping to paint a broader historical picture in which the Charterhouse occupied a central role. At the conclusion of the visit, an in-depth look at the Strozzi Table, one of the most representative works in the San Martino Museum, will be offered. Painted in the second half of the 15th century, the panel is the oldest known view of Naples, documenting the urban and port layout of the city in the Aragonese period. Recently subjected to relamping, the work has been enhanced through new lighting that restores its chromatic complexity and richness of detail.
Participation in the guided tours, which are included in the cost of the museum entrance ticket (full price 6 euros, reduced 2 euros for 18-25 year olds, free for those under 18 and eligible categories), requires mandatory reservations at accoglienza.sanmartino@cultura.gov.it. Reservations will be active from the Monday prior to each visit date, until the maximum number of participants scheduled for each shift is reached. It is necessary to specify the desired shift in the request. The initiative is part of a broader program to enhance the historical and architectural heritage of the Charterhouse of San Martino, which combines evening opening with a targeted cultural offer, capable of bringing the public closer to a lesser known but fundamental part of the monumental complex.
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| Carthusian Monastery of San Martino, Gothic Underground reopens with three extraordinary evening openings |
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