âA âNGANNACATA âE SANTâANNA
301st Edition of the Celebration in Honor of
SANTâANNA in the PALUDI
Naples, July 17â27, 2025
by Luciano Troiano
"My dear Saint Anne, Saint Anne respond to those who call upon you. Oh mother of Parule, bring us to Jesus."
It is the most famous prayer dedicated to the mother of the Virgin Mary, recited during prayers and celebrations in honor of the grandmother of Jesus.
âA âNGANNACCATA
The statue of Saint Anne with the Child Virgin dressed for the feast
This year marks the 301st edition of the popular celebration, which will begin on July 17 and end on the 27th of the month: a devotion of the Neapolitan people that remains as strong as ever toward the âVecchia Putenteâ ("the Powerful Old Lady"), renewed each year through the dressing of the statue. The word ângannacata derives from the Arabic *hannaqa*, describing a jeweled woman, like the ornate necklace that adorns the statue of Saint Anne. Dominating the celebration are the traditional colors yellow and green, associated with Saint Anne. These colors also have liturgical meaning: green symbolizes hope, growth, and new lifeâas well as the promise of eternal life in Christâwhile yellow (or often gold) represents the glory of God, divine light, royalty, faith, and wisdom, as well as heavenly love and festivity.
THREE CENTURIES OF HISTORY
This is âa tradition that has been renewed since the late 1600s, combining in an inseparable bond of faith, popular devotion, history, legend, and even the urban layout of what was once an extra-moenia area. In the Case Nuove district, stretching from the current train station to San Giovanni, the cult of Saint Anne has become the symbol of this part of Naples that is neither center nor periphery and has its own unique identity,â writes Rosa Carillo Ambrosio for *Corriere del Mezzogiorno*.
âThe solemn enthronement of the statueâwith the peculiar feature of a silver heart on its chestâthe novena in the week leading up to the feast with the recitation of the ancient Rosary in Neapolitan,â continues Ambrosio, âproclaiming âSantâAnna vicchiarella/site la Madre de Maria/SantâAnna pura e bella/Vuje salvate stâanema miaâ along with its specific litanies, the ritual of the ângannaccata on the evening of the 24th, the Midnight Hymn sung the night before July 26th followed by the ringing of bells announcing the feast day, and the solemn Mass, are much more than a religious festival schedule. These events mark an ancient and still vibrant popular devotion.â
Alongside the procession of San Gennaro and that of *âO Munacone* recently revived in the Rione SanitĂ , the Saint Anne procession is rightfully considered one of the oldest Neapolitan processions still existing, enduring, and widely attended by the faithful.
THE VARA AND THE PAGNOTTIELLO
The statue of Saint Anne carried in procession through the neighborhood on the "vara"
The procession is commonly referred to as âSicilian-styleâ because of the *vara*, the ceremonial cart. The traditions of the Paludi area were largely centered on the cult of the Saint, whom the people still regard with affection as a beloved family member. Many devotional practices remain, such as Saint Anneâs Tuesday, on which a special Mass and pious acts are dedicated to the Patroness, accompanied by culinary traditions like the preparation of the pagnottiello: a stuffed bread to be enjoyed throughout the day.
The pagnottiello
The celebration and its procession were deeply felt and remain one of the last surviving neighborhood festivals in Naples. Records of the procession date back to the early 19th century: the Saint was carried through the Paludi area and the streets of
Borgo Loreto on a decorated cartâat first pulled by the faithful and later by oxen. A more structured arrangement was introduced by rector Don Tobia Strina, who organized a team of carriers (now the Deputation of Bearers) to transport the pyramid-shaped platform bearing the statue. The tradition of the processional liturgy has endured to this day, though with adaptations over time.
And so, with their eyes on the crucifix, a prayer in Neapolitan begins:
"Vuje ca site âa mamma da Maronna: chesta grazia âa cerco, âa spero e âa voglio!"
POPULAR STORIES AND LEGENDS
Popular legends say that the venerable statue was found in the stagnant waters of the
Sebeto River, which flows through the Paludi area, by a farmer named Nicolino Panerano as he was returning from the battle at the
Ponte della Maddalena, which marked the expulsion of the
Jacobins. The man, known for his courage and devotion to faith and the Church, saw a little girl hiding in a pomegranate tree. Crying, she asked for help for her mother, who had fallen into a swamp while they were fleeing from a snake trying to bite the childâs heel. Nicolino, seeing the womanâs hand emerging from the mud, rushed to dig her out. As he dug, he realized that it wasnât a real woman, but a statueâand that in her arms was the very child who had asked him for help.
Celebrations in honor of Saint Anne just outside the church
Another legend, very dear to the people of Paludi, explains the heart that the statue bears on her chest: Baron Mascitelli, whose palace stood in the center of Paludi, had four childrenâthe first three were boys, and the youngest was a girl named Ninella. On his deathbed, the Baron made the three brothers promise not to allow the girl to marry, but to ensure she remained single or entered a convent. The girl, with no calling for religious life, fell in love with Antuono, a servant of her brothers, and wished to marry him. When the brothers discovered their bond, they took Antuono into the forest of Poggioreale and killed him, burying his body beneath an oak tree. Heartbroken over Antuonoâs disappearance, the girl made a vow to Saint Anne: she would enter the convent if she found out her beloved was at peace. That night, Ninella dreamed of Saint Anne entering her home with Antuono, who told her he was now in the grace of God and that his body was buried beneath an oak in Poggioreale. The girl went to the forest and, digging where she had been told, found her loverâs remains. She took a small bone and a lock of her own hair, placed them in a golden heart, and gave it to the Saint in gratitude, along with all her jewelry. The next day, she entered the convent of
San Gregorio Armeno, never to leave again.
The Miracle of the Three Daughters â oil on canvas, unknown artist, early 1800s
THE MIRACLE OF THE THREE DAUGHTERS
Another widely known tale links the image of Saint Anne to many places throughout the old
Kingdom of Naples: from lower Lazio to the far tip of Calabria, including Molise, Abruzzo, and all of Campania. It is known as the
âMiracle of the Three Daughtersâ. Three young girls, orphaned and alone, were desperate due to a cruel landlord demanding several overdue rents. Distressed and publicly humiliated, and with no one in the world to defend or help them, the girls threw themselves at the feet of Saint Anne, professing their daughterly love for the Great Mother. The next day, the landlord received a visit from an old woman richly dressed, who handed him a bag containing the exact amount the girls owed. When the man asked if she was a relative, the old woman replied that she was Saint Anne, who from Heaven serves as mother and advocate for the three daughtersâand then she vanished. The man, overcome with joy at having been graced by Saint Anneâs presence, converted, went to the girls to thank them, told them they would never have to pay anything again, and then traveled to Naples to the Church to sponsor a grand celebration in honor of the miraculous image. Depending on where the story is told, the landlord either dies in a state of grace or adopts the girls. This legend is often told through song, varying by dialect and local cadence. It is further affirmed by a 19th-century popular painting displayed in the church, showing three girls praying before the image of Saint Anne of the Paludi, who pours gold coins into the hand of one of them.
FAMOUS FIGURES LINKED TO SAINT ANNE OF THE PALUDI
The church was frequented in his youth by the great tenor
Enrico Caruso, whose family moved to the Paludi in the 1880s, settling on Via San Cosmo fuori Porta Nolana. He sang in the choir of Father Giuseppe Bronzetti, who served as assistant rector. Father Bronzetti not only discovered Carusoâs talent, but also encouraged and supported his early studies. He even wrote a musical comedy for him titled *"I briganti nel giardino di Don Raffaele"*. Carusoâs career began right in this church: during a funeral where he sang a Mass by
Saverio Mercadante, he was noticed by baritone Eduardo Missiano, who was so impressed by his voice that he introduced him to maestro
Guglielmo Vergine, who immediately agreed to give him lessons.
During the Battle of the Ponte della Maddalena, the area around the church was used as a military outpost. Cardinal
Fabrizio Ruffo stopped at the church to give thanks after the battle. The church maintained close ties to the Bourbon monarchy, and the Hymn of the Two Sicilies was played before the solemn procession of Saint Anne even after Italian unification.
The brigand Pilone, whose real name was
Antonio Cozzolino, hid in the Paludi area during the final days of his life, before being discovered and killed in 1870. Deeply devoted to the church, he was found with a picture of the statue of Saint Anne of the Paludi and a consecration to the Madonna in his pocket.
A young
Saint Pio of Pietrelcina celebrated Mass at Saint Anne of the Paludi during his stay in Naples for military service in 1916, while living with relatives in the neighborhood on Via San Cosmo fuori Porta Nolana. The church still houses several relics of the saint, as well as an altar dedicated to him.
Saint
Filippo Smaldone, founder of the Salesian Sisters of the Sacred Hearts, born in the nearby district of Borgo Loreto, was a devoted celebrant at the Church on several occasions. Today, the parish area includes a square named in his honor.
The famous Neapolitan singer
Mario Merola, son of a cobbler from Via Strettola Sant'Anna alle Paludi, spent part of his life in the neighborhood and never forgot his roots. Originally a port laborer, his first public performance was in 1959 during the concert for the Feast of Saint Anne of the Paludi. The scheduled singer,
Mario Trevi, was running late, and some friends of Merolaâaware of his vocal talentâinvited him on stage to entertain the audience until Trevi arrived. The *King of the sceneggiata* would always remember that moment as the baptism and blessing of his career. In 2006, a monument was erected at Largo SantâAnna alle Paludi, where he first performed, to honor his legacy in Naples.
A POEM DEDICATED TO SAINT ANNE OF THE PALUDI
The poet
Ferdinando Russo, the last guardian of the Neapolitan soul, dedicated a poem to this very place:
To Saint Anne of the Paludi
In the middle of the land, sits â Nnarella
sheâs seen it all, seen it all,
spinning and watching. And thinking of time
that has passed and still must pass!
Now sheâs grown old,
but she never left that place!
Itâs been thirty years and she hasnât
taken four steps into the city!
When she sees the train go by,
she crosses herself and murmurs:
âLord, protect us from hell â
theyâre devils, or what else!â
And then she says this smoke
ruins the tomatoes!
And then she crosses herself again:
âTake us home, Lord!â
THE FESTIVAL PROGRAM - 2025 EDITION
THE FESTIVAL PROGRAM â 2025 EDITION
Sources:
Press Reader.it
Corriere del Mezzogiorno
Contromano24.it
Storie di Napoli.it
Napoli velata e sconosciuta by Maurizio Ponticello
Le chiese di Napoli by Vincenzo Regina
Storie e leggende napoletane by Benedetto Croce
La devozione popolare a Napoli by Claudio Mendozza
Photo credits:
Francesco Vaccarella
Laura Piccolo
Parish of Saint Anne of the Paludi
Magnâe fuje
How to get to the Church of Sant'Anna alle Paludi - Naples