Naples Castles & Stately Homes
• A WorldWeb.com Travel Guide to Castles & Stately Homes in Naples, NA, Campania.
Castle of the Egg (Castel dell'Ovo)
The first sight for sailors entering the Gulf of Naples would be the heavily fortified 2,000-year-old Castle of the Egg, said to have been built on top of the site of an egg with mystical powers lodged in the floor of the ocean. It is said if the egg breaks, Naples will collapse.
New Castle (Castel Nuovo)
The Renaissance-era New Castle has three commanding battle towers out front, but even they couldn't protect the building from bad owners. Nearly demolished by the House of Aragón around 1450, the reconstructed castle is now where Naples' municipal government sits, the city commission having the privilege of meeting in the Barons' Hall.
Royal Palace (Palazzo Reale)
This 17th century palace, designed by Domenico Fontana, has viewable royal apartments with precious tapestries, paintings, antiques and marble floors. The palace stands on an equally interesting square, the Piazza del Plebiscito, built with a long colonnade and a church, the San Francesco di Paolo, that reminds of the Pantheon in Rome.
