Places to visit: Vesuvius Observatory, Church of the Savior and Hotel Eremo

Did you know that at the top of Mount Vesuvius there is a small eighteenth-century church?

And it is precisely there that the Vesuvius Observatory was founded by King Ferdinando II of Borbone.

Today it houses one of the most important Volcanological Museums.

Furthermore, here you can enjoy a suggestive panorama from the abandoned but still fascinating Eremo hotel.

CHURCH OF THE SAVIOR ON MOUNT VESUVIUS

Almost at the top of Vesuvius there is a small church that has become, over the centuries, a point of reference for the entire area at the foot of Vesuvius. Dedicated to the Savior, the building was built in the eighteenth century and represents a true votive offering, in fact it was erected by those infected by the plague who, exiled on Vesuvius in order to isolate the population from them, miraculously escaped the eruption of the volcano.

The small church, today a chapel of the Vesuvius Observatory complex, takes on great value for faith and popular culture. Value that increased at the beginning of the twentieth century thanks also to a historical event.

In fact, between December 31, 1899 and January 1, 1900, Cardinal Achille Ratti, the future Pope Pius XI from 1922, visiting Naples, wanted to go up Mount Vesuvius to the crater to observe the dawn of the new century from there, right from the church of the Savior. Accompanied by some members of the Naples Section of the Italian Alpine Club, after the traditional end-of-year dinner held at Cesaro’s house, he set off towards the summit of the volcano so that he could reach it at the first light of dawn, the first dawn of the 20th century.

VESUVIUS OBSERVATORY

The Vesuvius Observatory is the oldest scientific institution dedicated to the study of volcanoes, founded in 1841

The request to found the Observatory was made to the Borbone Government by King Ferdinando II.

Today it houses one of the most important Volcanological Museums.

for further information and to visit the museum read here

HOTEL EREMO

The Eremo hotel was built in 1902 by John Mason Cook, the same person who designed the mixed railway line that connected Ercolano (Puglia) to Mount Vesuvius. Before that, and perhaps this is where its name comes from, there was an inn next to the church, where a self-styled hermit cooked omelettes and offered Lacryma Christi (a fine Campanian wine) to tourists. There is still the rusty plaque, which probably dates back to that place, with the writing “Eremita”.

The last owner of the Eremo Hotel seems to have been a certain commendatore Mario Paudice, who refused to sell the complex to wealthy buyers, relegating the ancient and prestigious residence to oblivion and total abandonment, while still remaining one of the most fascinating and panoramic places on Mount Vesuvius.