TRACES OF THE LOST CITY

 << AND NOW RAISE UP THE  PICK ! KNOCK IT ALL DOWN !  DOING SO THE EVIL GERMS OF INFIRMITY ARE NO MORE , THEN THE FRESH AIR AND LIGHT WILL BRING FORTH PROSPERITY AND HEALTH >>. ON 15 th JUNE 1889 NICOLA AMORE, IN THE PRESENCE OF THE ROYAL COUPLE , OFFICIALLY OPENED THE WORKS OF THE RESTORATION,OR PERHAPS IT WOULD BE  MORE CORRECT TO DESCRIBE IT AS “DEMOLITION”  AS AGOSTINO DEPRETIS  HOPED FOR DURING THE COLERA EPIDEMIC.THERE IS SOMEONE THOUGH WHO IS HORRIFIED AT THE SIGHT OF THE PICKS DOING THEIR  JOB, SOMEONE IN THE ALLEYS TRANSFORMED BY THE “RESTORERS”, STROLLING ALONG THOSE SIDE STREETS TAKING IN THE SIGHT OF ALL THE INCREDIBLE  RUINS LEFT IN THEIR WAKE,  THINKING THAT THE SAME DEVASTATION WAS BEING PLANNED ON AN EVEN LARGER SCALE UNTIL THE VERY MEMORY OF THE CITY WAS CANCELLED FOREVER – A CITY CLOUDED IN IT’S OWN MISERY, PAST AND PRESENT. IT IS  ALMOST SUPERFLUOUS TO  MENTION THAT  OUR  OWN RAFFAELE D’AMBRA WITH HIS PUBLICATIONS  AND ILLUSTRATIONS  TRIES TO  RECUPERATE IN THE ONLY POSSIBLE WAY SOMETHING OF THE NAPLES  THAT WAS, IN THE MOMENT  THAT IT WAS READY TO DISAPPEAR  FROM SIGHT FOREVER , TOGETHER WITH THE CENTURY  COMING  TO AN  END. HE IS ALSO THERE ON THAT DAY CONSIDERED BY ALL A CELEBRATION, MIXED UP IN THE  CROWD  LISTENING TO NICOLA AMORE’S SPEECH , BUT THE EMPHASIS ON THE SUBJECT BY THE SPOKESMAN  AND THE RHETORIC COMMENTS OF THE JOURNALISTS  WHICH EXALTED THE OCCASION , MADE HIM AT FIRST UNEASY AND THEN ANGRY. A JOURNALIST FROM << IL ROMA >> WHO FOLLOWING THE BEGINNING OF THE  DEMOLITION,  EVEN TOOK  FOR GRANTED  THE IDEA OF A NEW ERA IN WHICH << MATERIAL PROGRESS AND MORAL PROGRESS  WOULD DEVELOP  TOGETHER >> TO THIS HACK-REPORTER AND TO ALL THOSE THAT  CONTINUED TO EXALT THE << DEMOLISHING  PICK  FOR THE OLD AND THE CONSTRUCTIVE TROWEL FOR THE NEW >>  THE <<  PROFESSOR >>  BITTERLY OBJECTS THAT
<< PERHAPS THE NEW WON’T  BE  AS BEAUTIFUL AS THE OLD  WHICH IS BEING DESTROYED >> AND   WARNS THAT  << MAYBE  >> IT IS ONLY CAUTION WHICH HOLDS ON TO THE FIRM IDEA  THINKING THAT  << WITH THE PICK YOU LOSE  UNCOUNTABLE MEMORIES,  NEVER ENDING SWEETNESS >>. NAPLES WILL BECOME LARGER, CERTAINLY CLEANER BUT  << AS A DEAD THING >>, SIMILAR TO MILAN AND TURIN  IN ALL ASPECTS, DETACHED FROM IT’S OWN PERSONAL  << ARTISTIC CHARACTER , TYPICAL, THE ONLY ONE OF IT’S KIND >>. MOREOVER, CONTRARY TO A HUNDRED OTHERS << THE RICHEST  AND MOST FLOURISHING ITALIAN CITY >> WILL CONTINUE  TO SACRIFICE ITSELF DURING THE REPEATED HOLOCAUSTS THAT IT IS FORCED TO FACE  IN THE LIGHT OF  THE NEW SITUATION, KEEPING IT ON THE EDGE  << SEPARATED , ISOLATED, IN THE MIDDLE OF ALL TRADE ACTIVITY>>.<<  OUR SHAME AND A CURSE FOR THOSE ALL WHO WILL COME AFTER >>, SO CLAIMED D’AMBRA, AND NOT ONLY FOR  CRIMES PERPETRATED BUT ABOVE ALL FOR THE INDIFFERENCE  SHOWN TOWARDS THE ANTIQUE CITY, A CITY WHICH CONSERVED PRICELESS MEMORIES OF << NATURAL HISTORY, HYDROGRAPHY, TOPOGRAPHY >>, WARNING SIGNS OF <<VOLCANIC FIRE, FLOODING, EARTHQUAKES >> UNREPLACEABLE DOCUMENTS  REGARDING POLITICAL HISTORY, THE NOBILITY, THE PEOPLE, THE FOUNDATION, DEMOLITION AND RECONSTRUCTION OF EVERY TYPE OF BUILDING>>, AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST THE  TESTIMONY OF << ALL THE ARTS OF DESIGN, INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE >>. A DEVASTATION WHICH COULD  BE CONSIDERED A SIGN OF  MADNESS IF YOU WEREN’T AWARE  THAT IT WAS THE UNFORTUNATE  OUTCOME OF SPECULATION AND THEFT. AND SO IT WAS THAT FROM THE  BEGINNING OF “NAPLES OF ANCIENT TIMES”  IT DECLARES A FIRM  AND DESPERATE  REFUSAL FOR THE PRINCIPLES  WHICH INSPIRED THE RESTORATION. THERE WERE NO OTHER REFUSALS OF THIS SORT , BUT EVEN  THE ONE OF THE AUTHOR - AND NOT WITHOUT CAUSE  ALSO - GIVE THE WORK A SAVAGE UP-TO-DATE  AWARENESS. IS IT REALLY TRUE, ASKS D’AMBRA, THAT THE DESTRUCTION OF THE VERY HEART  DOESN’T AFFECT NEGATIVELY  IN ANY WAY THE ARTISTIC PATRIMONY OF THE CITY ? IS IT TRUE THAT THESE AREAS MUST BE CONSIDERED NOTHING MORE THAN A LABYRINTH  OF ANONIMOUS CONSTRUCTIONS, INSIGNIFICANT WITH  NOTHING TO SHOW FOR THE PASSING OF TIME ?  BLASPHEMY ! THE << PROFESSOR >> REACTS AND RIGHTLY SO.  << THESE BACK STREETS , THESE ALLEYS , THESE BUILDINGS RISE  << ABOVE A FEW SLIPS OF SEA WHERE FOR MANY CENTURIES RUINS OF PAST CULTURES HAVE LAIN >>: GREEK AND ROMAN, OF THE DUKEDOM, AND THE DOMINATIONS OF THE NORMANS, SWARBIANS, ANGEVINS AND ARAGONESE >>. THEREFORE QUITE A LARGE INVENTORY OF << BUILDINGS AND TEMPLES, HOUSES OF THE LIVING AND THE  DEAD >> ACCORDING TO SOME, WERE  DESTINED FOR  << THE HEROIC DESIGNS  OF THE PRESENT DAY  >> TO  BE ERECTED IN THE AREA  BETWEEN THE  << STRAIGHT ROAD >> AND THE SEA. THIS INVENTORY  WAS  NOT DECIDED ON AFTER SERIOUS  VALUTATION OF ANY KIND, ESPECIALLY IF YOU CONSIDER  THAT ONLY A FEW YEARS LATER , IN 1902, ADOLFO AVENA, THE FIRST SUPERVISOR OF THE MONUMENTS IN NAPLES  PUBLISHED A LONG SERIES OF  MAPS, DESIGNS AND PLANIMETRIES SHOWING WHICH WORKS  SHOULD HAVE BEEN SAVED FOR THEIR HISTORIC AND ARTISTIC VALUE, BUT INSTEAD HAD ALREADY BEEN  OR WERE ABOUT TO BE DESTROYED. D’AMBRA GOES EVEN FURTHER, AND HIS WORK IS THE ONLY REMAINING  THING WHICH DOCUMENTS GREAT  PART OF THE LONG LOST ENVIRONMENTS, IN FACT , CONTINUING TO CITE  THE INTRODUCTION  IN  “NAPLES OF ANCIENT TIMES” , NOT ONLY DID HE MENTION THE VENERABLE CHURCHES AND NOBLE BUILDINGS BUT HE TRIED ALSO TO RECONSTRUCT THE EVENTS AND CIRCUMSTANCES << OF THE SURROUNDING LOCALITIES, BOTH  MEMORABLE AND HISTORICAL >>.

Atanasio Mozzillo