Visit the Abbey of Montevergine with Campania>Artecard, founded by St. William of Vercelli in the first quarter of the 12th century to serve as a beacon of Marian devotion and a reference point for all of Southern Italy. The Icon of the Madonna has been the object of pilgrimages for centuries. Inside, you can explore the Abbey Museum.

The Abbey of Montevergine was founded by St. William of Vercelli in the first quarter of the 12th century. He aimed to make this place a beacon of Marian devotion and a reference point for all of Southern Italy. Thanks to the presence of important relics and, from the 13th century onwards, the thaumaturgical Icon of the Madonna of Montevergine, the Abbey became a destination for constant pilgrimages not only from the surrounding lands but also from Naples, the capital of the Kingdom, and neighboring regions.

The Abbey of Montevergine is organized around two places of worship: the Cathedral Basilica, built in 1960 based on the design by architect Florestano di Fausto, where the miraculous Icon of the Madonna of Montevergine (Montano d’Arezzo, 13th century; 430×210 cm) dominates the main altar; and the Ancient Church, from the Baroque era, designed by Gian Giacomo Conforti on the remains of the medieval structure.

Inside, there is the remarkable 16th-century wooden choir, the magnificent 13th-century canopy in Romanesque-Byzantine style, and the Chapel of the Holy Sacrament, commissioned by the Angevin Sovereigns of Naples in the 13th century to house the mortal remains of Catherine II of Valois, Empress of Constantinople. The chapel contains valuable paintings by Ludovico Mazzanti (1686–1775) and Vincenzo Volpe (1855–1929). Surrounding the two churches are several areas open to the public: the Montevergine Abbey Museum, the Permanent Exhibition of Nativity Scenes from Around the World, the Crypt, and some reception rooms. The complex also includes the Meteorological Observatory and monastic quarters.