Massa Lubrense - ArcheoClub D'Italia
In 1971 ARCHEOCLUB D'ITALIA was founded as an Archaeological Documentation Centre in order to support scholars and experts in archaeology with a concrete commitment in the dissemination of knowledge of the Past.
(Our Mission - Archeoclub d'Italia (archeoclubitalia.org))
The ArcheoClub Association is a part of local communities in Italy, taking use of scholars. with all sorts of professional skills that are valuable in the work of promoting, managing and protecting monuments in collaboration with the country of Italy and its historical artifacts. ArcheoClub D'Italia involves historical investigation, and bringing attention back to these archives locally. ArcheoClub's objective is to always protect the cultural and environmental heritage of the area.
I shared my time at this internship with my supervisor Stefano the President of ArcheoClub, my school supervisor Dominico, and many co-workers.
Massa Lubrense - ExCathedral
Former Cathedral of Santa Maria delle Grazie
"The ancient cathedral of Santa Maria delle Grazie and the adjoining bishop's palace characterize, with their elegant eighteenth-century lines, the square of Massa Lubrense, a city that has been a bishopric since the eleventh century: only with the Concordat of February 16, 1818 between the King of Naples and the Roman Court, together with the dioceses of Vico and Capri, was incorporated into the Sorrento Archdiocese."
Our first task was to translate the history of the Former Cathedral of Santa Maria delle Grazie from Italian to English by exploring the Cathedral, documenting each chapel inside, and learning about the restoration of the Cathedral and how its changed over the years.
READ MORE HERE
Me and my co-workers at ArcheoClub walking to Il Cerriglio in the same spot as this image.
Il Cerriglio
The building dates back to the 15th century because of a villa built by Giovan Giacomo De Martino, secretary of Queen Giovanna II of Anjou Durazzo, but the fountain we researched dates back to the end of the 17th century, this is known because 1681 is well engraved on the side masks of the nymphaeum on the fountain.
"But the mysteries of the Cerriglio deepened especially in the first decades of the 19th century, when the architectural complex became, like the Nunziatella in Naples, the place to abandon children born out of wedlock.
In this regard, two unknown but important tombstones, kept there, which refer to the presence of the "Wheel of projectiles". This must have been located very close to the chapel dedicated to St. John the Baptist which rises to the right of the entrance, and was once also accessible directly from the main avenue. The newborn was left in a sort of drum-shaped wooden structure which, when rotated, pushed the child into the building. There were bells attached to the wheel to alert the attendant of the child's presence so that he could pick him up quickly and put him away in the heat. But it could happen that the employee was late and someone complained.
And here, perhaps, is the reason for one of the plaques which peremptorily reads:
'IF I MURMURE, GRATEFUL I WILL HELP YOU, DON'T MURMURE WHEN I'M NOT RUNNING'. The other plaque is in Latin and reads: 'HIC VEGIENTIS INFANTIS FURTIM NATI AC OPE DESTITUTI REFUGIUM ET SALUS – 1802'
The infants were then entrusted to the famous Massa wet nurses, known throughout the Kingdom for their prosperous abundance of milk. Once breastfeeding was over, the "children of the Madonna" (the name by which foundlings or exposed children were more commonly called) were sent to orphanages and sometimes adopted.
An exceptional document entitled "Proietti's instant aid" prescribes the initial care to be given to newborns left in the Cerriglio wheel. The document is preserved in the municipal historical archive together with extensive documentation in which there is no shortage of lists, rules, various correspondence and annual statistics. We report the transcription below, although with some gaps as it is only partially readable." - Archeoclub Lubrense
