Villa Comunale

Between the sea and the Riviera di Chiaia stretches Naples's Villa Comunale, a formal garden with avenues, fountains and sculptures. At its seaward end, the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn links the park to a major chapter in marine science.

Why it matters

Laid out in 1780 at the wish of Ferdinand IV of Bourbon, the garden was modelled on the Tuileries as a promenade between city and sea. The fenced park covers about 110,000 square metres between Piazza Vittoria and Piazza della Repubblica. It also became home to the research station founded by Anton Dohrn in 1872.

What to notice

The garden's avenues, fountains and sculpture form a shaded corridor along the waterfront. The Casina Pompeiana and the Cassa Armonica, a music pavilion designed by Enrico Alvino, are among its notable structures. Near Via Caracciolo, the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn represents the garden's scientific history; the Circolo della Stampa occupies another prominent building. The park has twenty gates along Riviera di Chiaia, Via Caracciolo and its two end squares.

Context and history

The Villa Comunale was created as a royal promenade. In 1872 the municipality granted Anton Dohrn a plot at its seaward edge for a zoological research station. The building was completed in 1873, and its public aquarium opened on 26 January 1874 under the direction of English engineer William Alford Lloyd. The institution was formally inaugurated in 1875 and expanded with new buildings in 1885–88 and 1905. A major restoration in 1999, designed by Alessandro Mendini, renewed the garden and its planting.