Chiesa di Sant'Anna all'Arenella, Catholic church in Arenella district, Naples, Italy.
The Chiesa di Sant'Anna all'Arenella has a Neoclassical facade with Ionic pilasters and a Greek-style pediment, built to plans by architect Ferdinando de Rosenheim. The church was erected in 1900 and consecrated on 26 June 1900; the campanile was added later. It stands on Via Arenella in the Arenella district and belongs to the Archdiocese of Naples.
The church originated from an 1896 incident when a painting of Saint Anne was displaced during a storm and recovered by Amalia Stampa del Prete. This discovery led to the establishment of the church in the early 1900s as a place of worship centered on this found image.
The church is named for Saint Anne, to whom Amalia Stampa del Prete prayed for the safe return of her sons Mario and Roberto from the First World War; when both came back unharmed she funded the building as a votive offering. Pope Pius XI authorised it, and the convent was entrusted to the Sisters of John the Baptist, who cared for orphan girls, so the church long served as an orphanage.
The church sits on Via Arenella in the Arenella neighborhood and is walkable from central Naples. Visitors should check local mass times before arriving and dress respectfully, as it remains an active place of worship throughout the day.
The church was consecrated on 26 June 1900, but its bell tower came later, added by the parish priest Gennaro Errico. The building rose on the spot where Amalia Stampa del Prete had the church built as a votive offering after her two sons, Mario and Roberto, returned unharmed from the First World War.
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