Piazza San Domenico Maggiore, Square in Naples, Italy

Piazza San Domenico Maggiore is a square in the heart of Naples, at the crossing of Spaccanapoli and Via Mezzocannone. It features a tall obelisk with a dark statue on top, a church with a flat facade and a small dome, and several palaces around the edges.

The square was laid out under Alfonso I of Naples, who also commissioned the large staircase beside the church apse. In 1656, the obelisk was erected by the Neapolitans as a thanks for surviving a plague epidemic.

The square is a meeting point for locals and students from the nearby university. At its edge, a historic pastry shop sells the Ministeriale, a chocolate treat that is a local specialty.

The square is easy to reach on foot from the nearby Gesù Nuovo square and is always open. It is a good place to start a walk along Spaccanapoli, but watch out for traffic when crossing the intersecting streets.

The square marks the eastern limit of the ancient Greek walls of Neapolis. A stone plaque on the church wall, dating from 1764, still bans playing, shouting, and dumping waste in the square.