Via Raffaele Bosco 338 80069 Vico Equense NA Italia
The Chapel of Santa Lucia in Massaquano is a medieval jewel dating back to 1385, a treasure trove of 14th-century frescoes from the Giotto school. A small masterpiece hidden among the village houses, rich in history, art, and spirituality in the heart of Vico Equense.
The Chapel of Saint Lucy is located in the center of the ancient village of Massaquano, a historic hamlet of Vico Equense, and is considered one of the most important examples of medieval art on the Sorrento Peninsula. It was built in 1385 by order of the priest Bartolomeo de Cioffo as a place of worship and, likely, also as a funerary chapel for his family.
The building features a Gothic-style structure and houses a cycle of 14th-century frescoes of extraordinary artistic value, attributed to the Giotto school. The paintings depict episodes from the life of Saint Lucy, scenes from the life of Christ, and the famous "Dormition" and "Coronation of the Virgin," a rare and iconographically complex theme.
Over the centuries, the chapel has undergone several transformations: in particular, at the end of the 19th century, the frescoes were covered by a layer of lime during a careless restoration, remaining hidden for over a century. Only in the 1980s were they rediscovered and subsequently restored, bringing to light one of the most precious pictorial cycles in the area.
The interior features a single nave with a cross vault and still retains an intimate and evocative atmosphere. The walls are entirely decorated with fragmentary but striking frescoes, which recount the medieval devotion and artistic richness of the village.
Today, the Chapel of Santa Lucia is considered a true treasure trove of hidden art, a place that unites history, spirituality, and culture, and represents one of the most significant testimonies to Vico Equense's medieval heritage.